Stamp
by BurrbleFish
Summary: Sakura Haruno and her best friend had always been the targets of bullying and teasing at their school - always geeky, or nerdy, or unfashionable. The Uchiha Halloween Party is coming up, and Sakura gets a golden invitation! Side mission: get all five approval stamps. Main mission: figure out who meant to give it to her in the first place. :: MultiSaku
1. Chapter One

**• Part One of the 'Holiday Series' •**

**• Rated T •**

* * *

**• STAMP •**

* * *

**• Chapter One •**

* * *

**-WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 26TH, 2012-**

Sakura brushed a strand of pink hair away from her pale face, eyes settled on the textbook before her. She pushed up her glasses absentmindedly, fingering the corner of the page before flipping it to the next.

It remained silent, save for the groups of friends littered closer to the exit, way past the rows and rows of books that separated them and her.

To Sakura, this place was a haven.

There was a rustle, then the quiet padding of footsteps appeared to round one of the bookcases.

"Sakura-chan," her closest friend greeted from behind. The pinkette didn't look up until Hinata sat down beside her, the scraping of the bottom of the wooden chair falling upon deaf ears.

She finally glanced to her right, and straightened herself when she did.

"Hey, Hinata-chan," Sakura replied, a soft smile on her face. Her right hand remained on the line of words she was currently skimming through, but careful eyes scanned her best friend.

Hinata returned the small smile, shuffling around in her bag to yank out her math notebook. She slid the cover back and flipped to the page she had her notes in.

With a final nod, Sakura let her eyes fall back onto the sentence. Hinata pulled out her highlighter and pencil and began to review what she had written yesterday.

The pair sat in the library, all the way in the back to stay away from the general populace of the school that came in here to either _look_ smart, or make-out in a secluded corner. Both of them were considered the geekiest, nerdiest, ugliest girls of the school.

Fashion, looks, labels - they never cared for either of those things, despite being quite rich. Hinata Hyuuga, the daughter of the CEO of Hyuuga Corps, which only fell second after the Uchiha Corps. And Sakura Haruno, daughter - and heir - to both of the CEOs of Haruno Corps, which tied at number one in Konoha alongside said Uchiha family.

Nothing but themselves, their families, and eachother mattered to them. Getting well fed mattered to them. Having even scraps of clothing mattered to them. Having a roof over their heads mattered to them.

Substance over beauty was all that mattered to them.

"What are you doing?" Hinata inquired after a few moments, referring to the textbook.

Sakura closed the cover, fingers in between the pages. 'Pre-Calculus' was written across the front in bold, white letters. Hinata nodded, accepting the silent answer, then motioned to her notebook.

"I needed some help on last night's homework. But I thought you were busy with something else so I couldn't ask yesterday," Hinata explained, pointing at her notes.

"What do you need help with?" Sakura asked, opening her textbook again then leaning back in her seat.

"I left my textbook in my locker yesterday and I never got the Greek meaning, or the definition of a Brachistochrone." Hinata bit her lip, tapping the tip of her pencil against her notebook.

"Oh," Sakura said, flipping her textbook a few pages. "Brachistochrone. Here's how you spell it," Hinata scribbled the letters down, "and it's just a cycloid hanging downwards."

Hinata nodded, urging her to continue.

The two remained in the library until the bell rang

* * *

World History was uneventful. They had nearly all of their classes together, but they didn't have any popular people in that class.

Unlike most popular people, the kids they had at this school were top notch - high grades and everything.

The two opened the door to their English classroom, seeing Kakashi sitting at the desk, busily grading papers. He glanced up at the noise and was met with the sight of his favorite pupils. He smiled that eye-crinkling smile.

"Good morning, Sakura, Hinata," he greeted pleasantly.

Hinata waved whereas Sakura replied with a, "Good morning, sensei."

"How has your morning been?" Kakashi questioned, leaning back in his chair. He capped his red pen and put it in the little ceramic cup Sakura had given him for his birthday. It was a light green-grey color with a tall cherry blossom tree painted along the side.

"Good," was Hinata's only answer, sitting down in her seat. Both her and Sakura shared the front, center desks, closest to Kakashi due to the seating chart he arranged two months ago. He had known the duo for quite a while, and was protective of them in a fatherly way, always watching over them; because he knew of the bullying and teasing they went through.

"That's great," Kakashi mused, fixing the papers he'd been grading into a neat pile. "You're awfully early. We have another ten minutes before first period even lets out."

"Iruka-sensei let us out early because we finished the activity," Sakura explained, pulling out her English notebook and getting up. She passed the many rows of seats and reached the back bookshelf, pulling out two textbooks.

"Ah, I see. How are your essays coming along?" he questioned, getting up with a dry-erase marker at hand.

"Sensei, trying to make small talk?" Hinata asked, evading his question slightly. She thanked Sakura silently for the textbook and they opened the covers, looking for the page that they were assigned to read in class.

Kakashi chuckled. The tall man began writing the day's date and assignment on the board, which Sakura and Hinata were working on. "Well, you did come early. Don't blame me for being bored."

"Get a girlfriend then," Sakura suggested, skimming the page quickly, but smirking just a bit. Hinata giggled at that.

"And that would be how?"

The pair laughed at his answer.

Kakashi chuckled again, then capped the marker and set it down. He returned to his seat and looked through the papers he had arranged earlier. "Halloween is coming up soon. So your essays?"

Hinata cursed jokingly at not evading his question enough and Kakashi grinned behind his medical mask.

"The one about Halloween?"

"Halloween. Its history. Its traditions. Yes," Kakashi said, nodding.

"Hm," Sakura hummed thoughtfully, absorbed in the short story on the pages of her textbook. She completed the reading, leaning back in her seat and staring up at her teacher.

Kakashi met her gaze, seeing her glasses glide down her nose just a bit.

"Mine's going good," she said easily, lips quirking up. "I actually found a lot of interesting stuff."

"What about?" Hinata asked, finishing the reading as well. She sat up in her seat and set her inquisitive stare on the smaller girl beside her.

"About how vampirism and lycanthropes came to be," she explained. "All because of diseases."

Kakashi shook his head, grinning again. "Of course you'd find _that_ interesting." Sakura huffed.

"Shut up, sensei."

He laughed.

The bell rang, a high, shrilled noise signaling the end of first period. Both Sakura and Hinata chose that moment to begin writing answers to the constructive responses on the short story. Kakashi quickly set down the papers he'd been skimming over just as the door opened.

Students - all his - streamed through the door, many of them chattering. The commotion outside was loud, many people screaming and laughing and a few swears thrown here and there.

By the time the bell rang again to signal the start of second period, Kakashi was taking roll using the assigned seats. And Sakura and Hinata had finished answering the questions and were each reading their own books.

"Good morning, class," Kakashi greeted, standing up and putting his clipboard away. He received a disjointed chorus of greetings back, but still chirped happily. He picked up the papers sitting on the corner of his desk. "I'm going to pass back your essays on the 'Third Shinobi World War' and then we'll get started, alright?"

He got no reply, but was already busily returning the essays.

"Naruto, you really should've known better. Tell me, when did shinobi _ever_ use light-sabers during the war?" Kakashi asked exasperatedly, handing the paper back.

"Hey! I thought it would've been cool!" Naruto replied indignantly, grinning off the seventy-four percent on his paper. "Besides, I got a C this time!"

"I gave you a C out of pity, Naruto. Because this time, you actually spelled your last name _right_."

Naruto pouted in his seat, but grinned once again at the laughter rounding the room. "BELIEVE IT!"

Kakashi shook his head, then turned to Naruto's seat-mate.

"Sasuke, good job," he complimented, slipping Sasuke his paper. The boy stared disinterestedly at the ninety-eight percent on the paper, but raised an eyebrow at the marked off two-percent.

"Ninety-eight?" he intoned.

Sakura glanced to her left out of the corner of her eye, where Sasuke sat at a desk with Naruto. She never really liked either of them, but she had to admit that they were better looking than average people. Definitely nice to look at.

But they were only two of her bullies.

"I marked you down because of grammatical errors. Sasuke, this is an advanced class. And we're two months well into the school year. I overlooked many other errors but I won't be as lenient next time," Kakashi explained smoothly. Sasuke snorted, leaving the paper underneath his notebook.

Kakashi continued down further, passing out the essays.

The top five students were in this order:

Shikamaru Nara: Ninety-nine percent and marked off for not explaining the Sharingan enough.

Neji Hyuuga: Ninety-eight and a half percent and marked off for not properly introducing or naming the 'Yellow Flash of Konoha'.

Sasuke Uchiha: Ninety-eight percent and marked off for grammatical errors.

And Gaara Sabaku: Ninety-six percent with grammatical and punctuational errors.

Kakashi was a _critic_ at heart.

He turned the final corner, heading closer and closer to his desk and complimenting and/or degrading his students (coughKibacough). The scarecrow-like teacher handed Hinata her paper.

Hinata looked up, but carefully held her chin down, and grasped the paper. The ninety-two percent up at the top made her breathe a sigh of relief.

"Good job, Hinata. But next time, I would like you to properly name the sites and locations in the war, okay?"

She nodded then ducked her head in a 'thank you'. Snickers flew around the classroom like crows, many laughing at the ugly red she turned in embarrassment. A few desks behind, Neji sighed in aggravation, glaring at Hinata slightly and muttering about her gracelessness and uselessness.

Kakashi's gaze scoped the room and it fell quiet.

He handed the final paper over, carefully letting his fingers close around the corner so that the bright red grade remained at the top. A 'one-hundred percent' shown in clear hand-writing, an 'A+' sitting beside it. He slid the paper over to Sakura and she closed the book she was reading to glance down at the grade.

Kakashi grinned. "You're description and overall opinion on The Battle of Kikyo Pass was riveting. Along with your take on whether or not K.Y. was orphaned," he mused, clearly finding the paper he returned quite amazing. "And your explanation on the ANBU Root organization was interesting. Very well done."

There were several whispers. The girl caught the attention of many others. Sakura knocked Shikamaru out of first place, which surprised the lad. He sat up in his seat to look up incredulously at his teacher, then her, which was a motion that remained ignored.

A smile of appreciation touched Sakura's lips. Being complimented instead of downgraded was nice for once-

The smile fell as soon as the teasing began.

"What a nerd!"

"I should've made her do my report."

"She's such a kiss-up!"

"I bet that paper was plagiarized!"

The grin on Kakashi's lips began to slide down into a firm, thin line. Sakura gingerly let her head droop, hunching in her seat.

"Class!" he boomed, easy-going onyx eyes growing darker in expertly restrained agitation, instead resembling pools of deep, black ink.

Between the two, he was protective of Sakura the most, because of the way she appeared. Hinata was without glasses, and had the long, dark hair and pearly eyes. While Sakura was just as beautiful, she did everything in her power to hide it.

"It would do you all well to follow her example and do better the next time. You all just laughed your way into not only doing the assigned reading and questions, but a whole period of silent reading. You talk, detention." His stare intensified and the class immediately fell into order.

Students got up, grumbling under their breaths but also grabbing textbooks from the back bookshelf to do the reading.

Kakashi sighed, shaking his head. He moved over to his desk after a moment's hesitation, and picked up a box sitting underneath. Armed with two red pens, he walked over to Sakura and Hinata's conjoined desks.

"Sakura, Hinata, come with me." His tone was much more pleasant and the two deemed it safe to meet his eye.

"What?! Why aren't they doing the assignment?!" Kiba whined. Naruto yelled out a loud agreement and the class followed at a quieter volume.

"Because these two already finished it," Kakashi replied nonchalantly. Beneath the reply was an edge that left no room for argument. "I expect it to be silent in here when I get back, is that clear?"

He received mixed audible replies, but paid no mind to it and followed the girls out.

As soon as they were standing behind the closed door of the classroom, Kakashi led them next door into an empty one. He dropped the box onto the desk and opened the cardboard lid, whilst Sakura and Hinata found themselves seated at the front two desks.

"What are we doing?" Sakura questioned curiously, one slender eyebrow raising.

Kakashi shuffled through the papers and picked up a few. They were simple halves of a paper and had lines of information on them, each having a name scrawled across the back.

"This was the note-taking strategies quiz you guys took last week. I haven't gotten around to grading them so I need you guys to do so. And it should be easy, considering you two had perfect scores." He nodded to the two papers he carried separately. "Any answer remotely close to this key right here," and another paper, "is correct."

Sakura took all three papers and handed Hinata hers. The key sat in between them.

"I'll come get you guys near the end of the period so that you can pack up and get to third period, alright?"

"Sure, sensei," Sakura answered, already grading the first paper she picked from the box. Kakashi chuckled at the halfhearted answer, but left the room quietly.

Silence filled the area for several minutes, only shuffling at the constant scratching of the tip of a pen on paper being the only apparent sounds.

It remained like that until Hinata spoke up.

"Sakura-chan?" she inquired, voice low and eyes busily reading over the chicken scratch on the paper in front of her.

"Hm?" Sakura hummed, marking a 'one-hundred percent' at the top of the paper, above the neat, dark script of the piece of loose leaf she had.

"Sasuke-san is having a Halloween party."

Sakura paused in writing and abruptly looked up. The other girl fidgeted under the scrutinizing emerald gaze.

"Why are you telling me this?"

Hinata stuttered, blushing. "A-Ah! Er, Neji-san can't go to the party unless I come with him. That's what Father said." She nervously fiddled with the cap of the pen, chewing on her bottom lip and avoiding Sakura's intense, emerald gaze.

Eyes she'd always admired.

"So you're going?"

"I-I...I sort of have to..."

Silence.

"...You have a choice, Hinata-chan," Sakura replied curtly. She flipped the page away, letting it fall on top of the 'done' pile growing in size on the other desk. Hinata looked up, staring at Sakura's profile hidden behind a curtain of pink hair.

"No," Hinata replied bitterly after a few moments. "Neji-san is very intimidating, Sakura-chan."

Sakura nodded after a few moments, understanding what Hinata was trying to say. Neji either threatened or frightened Hinata into going just so he could go. Maybe even bribed her. Or told her that she could go to Sakura's if she so wished - as long as she looked like she was going to Sasuke's party.

"Can you come with me, Sakura-chan?"

Hinata brought her out of her thoughts. She blinked.

"...What?"

"Sakura-chan," Hinata repeated. "Do you think you can come with me to the party?"

Sakura paused.

She _really_ didn't want to go. But this was her best friend - practically _sisters_ if it weren't for the fact that Sakura would be disgusted with herself for being related to Neji and wouldn't even refrain from trying to pluck his pretty eyes out with a fork at family reunions - they were talking about!

She hesitated. These were her bullies' party! She'd be damned if she let them pick on her and Hinata for free. Though...who knows? Maybe it could - _could_ - be fun...?

...

Nah.

But...but Hinata looked so _desperate._

Sakura sighed, knowing she made up her mind.

And Hinata grinned, knowing this as well.

"Oh, thank you!" Hinata cried out in a rushed breath, tackling Sakura into a hug. Sakura wobbled in her seat but supported the both of them, and returned the hug happily. She laughed at Hinata's exaggerated gratitude.

What could go wrong?

'..._Kami, I hope I didn't jinx this..._'

"Hey, let's finish this first," Sakura suggested. Hinata grinned, eyes twinkling like opalescent orbs, and nodded her head in a slow bob. She released Sakura and slid into her desk, still smiling widely.

It was then realization hit her like a ton of bricks.

"Wait."

Hinata was frowning this time, and Sakura looked up from the paper in front of her. Emerald eyes studied a pale face in confusion.

"What?"

She bit her lip. "Sakura-chan, you need an invitation."

Sakura stared a little longer, then shrugged, plucking three papers from the box and reading through the first. "Can't I just say I'm getting in with you? Doesn't that usually work?"

Hinata shook her head slowly. "You don't understand. You need to get five stamps - one from anyone with a stamp. It's like an approval saying that it's okay to have you there," Hinata explained. "And that's possible when you get the invitation." She frowned again. "It's strictly 'one invite per person'."

Sakura's eyebrows knitted together. "Oh..."

"...I'll ask Neji-san for an invitation, and maybe have him see if his friends can-"

"No."

Hinata froze that instant, her fingers dropping the red pen. She didn't realize it fell until the thud clatter signalling it hitting the ground resounded. Her set of pearls fell on Sakura.

The pinkette was shaking her head furiously, and the fire that usually remained doused during school hours was ignited like a match thrown into a pool of gas.

"...Wh-What?"

"You are _not_ going to Neji for an invitation," Sakura said, resolve firm. "I'll find a way to get it myself."

Sakura would not allow Hinata to go talk to Neji so openly. She was protective of her and Neji was an outright asshole. There was _no way_ she would let Hinata do something so risky just for _one_ measly invitation!

She'd do it herself - for her best friend.

Hinata hesitated for a few moments.

"I promise," Sakura reassured, nodding to herself. Her best friend needed her. She was going to keep her word.

It was right there in depths of emerald - truth and sincerity. Hinata could count on her. "...If you say so..."

Sakura stubbornly nodded, finishing the second paper in her hands. "Definitely. I'll find one on my own and-!"

Hinata's head snapped over to the girl on her left, alarmed at the sharp intake of breath. Sakura's eyes were as wide as dinner plates.

She slowly held up what was in her hand.

It was a gold parchment, thicker and much fancier than ordinary paper - probably more expensive, too. The intricate gold carvings across the edges indicated higher value. And the icing on the cake: the wax stamp of the Uchiha fan remained imprinted in red, hardened over time, at the lock of the parchment folded envelope style.

"That's an invitation..."

Hinata heard the words come out of her mouth before she felt them form on her lips. She stared in disbelief, the gold throwing metallic color across the empty room. But no one paid attention to that.

"Why would it be in the box?" Sakura questioned, feeling the envelope grow heavy in her hands. Hinata finally got her arms to move, and she pointed at the right corner of it.

"I don't know," she began. "The...the name of the receiver should be on the back..."

Hinata's hands reached out slowly until her fingertips met the edge of the envelope. She gripped it tightly, then turned it over. Both of them gasped loudly.

'_Sakura Haruno'_ was indented into the center of the back, written in fancy, calligraphy-like script.

"My...invitation...?" Disbelief colored Sakura's words, reading her name on the back over and over. She could just be seeing things, right?

Hinata's eyes were doing the same. "Who could this be from?" Hinata asked, voicing her questioning. She touched the indentation of Sakura's name, then ran her fingers atop the Uchiha wax stamp lightly - this thing was legitimately an invitation.

"I don't..." She couldn't even form the words. Astonishment was all she felt.

"Open it," Hinata suggested, tugging the corner.

Sakura numbly flipped the envelope back over. She opened the parchment, breaking the hardened red wax with the seal on it. It unfolded into a beige coloring on the inside, light and simple. Words in an inky black were scrawled in equally fancy handwriting, centered to perfection.

_'Dear Sakura Haruno,_

_You have been invited to Sasuke Uchiha's Halloween Party.  
_

_Be prepared in a complete costume and dress accordingly.  
_

_Please come with this invitation along with the complete five stamps below.  
_

_Your progress:  
_

[_**G.S.**_] - [ ] - [ ] - [ ] - [ ]

_See you soon.'_

Hinata gawked at the first stamp, disbelief taken to a whole other level. "'G.S.' That's Gaara Sabaku's stamp! Was he the one that was going to give you this?"

Sakura swallowed thickly, eyes fixated on the dark and dry stamp. But possibilities hit her.

Then it came down to one conclusion.

"...No, it depends... Who gave you your invitation?"

"Uh, Neji-san..."

"And the first one to stamp it?"

Hinata considered this, lip pouting in thought. Platinum blonde hair. Baby blue eyes. "...Ino Yamanaka..."

Sakura nodded her head slowly, absentmindedly. "So we can't be sure who was going to give this...to me..."

Hinata took that into account, and was about to open her mouth and speak-

At that moment, the door swung open. Kakashi strolled in with the air of ease, eyes lightening at the the sight of his favorite students - the only ones he could tolerate for more than an hour.

Sakura quickly stuffed the re-folded parchment into her bag and smiled up at Kakashi with expert fraudulence. He didn't seem to notice the fake in the smile.

"Five minutes 'till the bell rings. You guys made a lot of progress," he observed, staring at the piles of finished papers. "Tomorrow's Thursday. Are you guys going to finish these up for me?" He grinned, already sorting the box so that the finished were on the bottom and the unfinished were on top.

"Sure, sensei." Sakura nodded, swinging her bag over her shoulder. It seemed heavier with the weight of the envelope inside, and she pushed aside the odd, gut-feeling in the pit of her stomach.

"Good. You guys can stay in here and leave when the bell rings. 'Till tomorrow!"

Hinata inhaled and nervously waved at Kakashi. He grinned, once again apparently oblivious to the odd behavior, and turned. His long limbs carried himself out of the room, large box of graded and ungraded papers in his arms.

The door shut behind him.

Hinata immediately pried open her bag and sifted through the papers until a familiar gold shimmered beneath from the reflection of her phone. She tugged at the corner and pulled the envelope free.

Her hands held it out.

"Sakura." She caught her attention. "Here. This is mine..."

Sakura looked down at the parchment that looked like hers, but had Hinata's name in the same beautiful calligraphy. The dark-haired of the two flipped the front open, the seal already broken.

Inside were five stamps.

**I.Y.** for Ino Yamanaka.

**K.I.** for Kiba Inuzuka.

**N.U.** for Naruto Uzumaki.

**T.T.** for Tenten.

And **N.H.** for Neji Hyuuga.

She had her stamp log complete.

"How did you get all of those stamps?" Sakura questioned, staring at the different insignias. Each were in a different font or style, and ranged in color.

Hinata slowly closed the envelope once again, already putting it away. "Neji-san got them for me. When he gave me this, all of the stamps were already there."

Sakura groaned, pushing her glasses up her nose and letting the sound vibrate through her. "How am I supposed to get these stamps?" She sighed exasperatedly, already feeling uncomfortable at the thought of approaching someone for a stamp of approval.

"We could ask around?"

"That's suicide, Hinata-chan."

"Well, then we could-"

The bell rang its shrill warning sound, and Hinata's lips zipped close, pressing into a firm line. She gazed at the door. Sakura sighed, shaking her head. With a final nod, she led Hinata out for third period.

* * *

**•** **What do you think? It's sort of slow at first and Gaara didn't really show up here for the first stamp. But I needed a starting point ;) ****•**

******•** Like all of the other stories in the Holiday Series, this story's only gonna last five chapters - one for every Wednesday until Halloween! **•**  


**********•** Look forward to that, and tell me what you all think :) **•**  


**********•** A little spoiler alert: In each of the stories in the Holiday Series, Sakura ends up with a mystery man. I've already decided on who it is (And I've already decided for the Valentine one). But at first, It's sort of SakuMulti until she finds him XD **•**  


**********•** You guys can tell me who you're thinking on for the Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years ones. **•**  


**************• Love you all, and stay tuned! ****•**  


**************************************•** EDIT: Okay, so I JUST realized that I got the dates wrong. I thought that Halloween fell on a Thursday this year, but it falls on a Wednesday -_- Dumb mistake, I know. So I'm updating this story every Wednesday instead of Thursday ^^ And because of the miscalculation, there will be SIX chapters in this story instead of the usual five. Thanks!******************•**  



	2. Chapter Two

**•** **Part One of the 'Holiday Series' •**

**• Rated T •**

* * *

**• STAMP •**

* * *

**• Chapter Two •**

* * *

**-WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 3RD, 2012-**

****Already a week had passed, and there was barely any progress...

Hinata slowly walked out of the hallways at a snail-like pace, heading towards the gym for her dreaded third period class. Said class had been given to her at the beginning of the school year: P.E. Sakura was in the same P.E. class as her but had been called to stay after the bell rang last period upon Kakashi's request. Naturally, the pinkette had told her to go on ahead.

So, as luck would have it, she was left alone.

She never really liked not having Sakura around or nearby. Even though the two of them were both timid and quiet because of the bullying and teasing, Sakura had always been the stronger of the two when it came to defending themselves at some times.

The uselessness that appeared whenever she thought about that had suddenly shown up. Some sort of odd, gut feeling hit the pit of her stomach, and it didn't feel right at all.

But besides that, it felt like Hinata was even more vulnerable than usual whenever she was alone. Without her.

As per usual, she kept her head ducked, hiked up her backpack over her shoulder, and walked closer to the walls to try and remain inconspicuous - the way she did during the rare times she had to walk without Sakura to classes. But it didn't lessen the fear inside her. Hinata just wished she could blend into the buildings and travel from wall-to-wall like super-heroes or that one girl from X-Men. Or even just stayed behind with Sakura.

Kakashi would've given them both a pass.

But apparently, wishing to disappear wasn't enough.

A faint clacking noise plus light giggles began to become apparent behind Hinata, and the ball of fear in her stomach curled, tightening. She knew the pattern of those footsteps - Sakura and her had learned to figure out the pattern so they knew to flee as soon as possible.

But this time, she realized a tad too late.

"Hey, Freak Eyes!"

Hinata felt herself drain in color immediately at the familiar, clear voice. She was being beckoned over, but to her horror, her body would not respond. She couldn't turn around and obey.

She began to panic. Oh, she was definitely going to get it now.

Her legs continued to carry her further and further down the stairs past the doors to the cafeteria, heading for the girl's locker rooms. But no matter how much she seemed to ignoring who was behind her, the footsteps following her didn't stop.

Because the one calling her also had P.E.

"Oi! Are you deaf? I told you to stop!" Frustration was evident and Hinata begged her legs to give in and save herself a painful beating. But it wouldn't listen.

The high heels that had been clicking at an easy pace began to speed up. Eventually, they began to rapidly sound against the pavement, and the pearl-eyed girl's legs responded with its own sprints.

Hinata gasped.

Why was there no control?!

"HEY!"

Slim, slightly tanned, perfectly manicured and red-painted nails curled around the ends of Hinata's raven hair, then fisted it in a heavy grip. She yanked and Hinata was thrown back onto the ground, legs snapping to fold under her weight beneath her. Her backpack had fallen off of her shoulder, kicked away to the side by someone she didn't know.

Tears sprung and she withheld the gasp of pain threatening to escape her throat. Her slightly blurry vision moved from the ground to tall, dark red stilettos, long, slightly tanned legs, a short and black miniskirt, a red halter top, and finally - ruby red eyes.

Karin.

Said girl sighed in agitation, flipping her oddly cut, cherry-soda red hair over her shoulder. Her black rimmed glasses slid down her nose, and she glared at Hinata through mascara-covered lashes.

"I told you to stop, didn't I?" she questioned. Her red lips were pulled back in an ugly sneer and Hinata whimpered to herself. "Oh, you'll have to be punished for disobeying."

Her eyes left Hinata and searched her cronies. Once she saw who she was looking for, she clicked her tongue and two of the girls approached.

One had long, jet black hair and matching, endless black eyes. The other had hair a shade darker than Karin's, and burgundy eyes. Both were extremely violent - the first known for her love of utilizing wind chimes and bells to drive people crazy (usually to drive them to the brink of suicide) and the other for her love of cursing and her PMSing-like state.

Kin Tsuchi and Tayuya.

Kin advanced upon Hinata and let her open palm flatten roughly against the top of Hinata's head. Her eyes widened then clenched shut. Tayuya came up close, a long, metal, pointy stick in hand, resembling an overgrown needle. The darker-haired of the two balled her fist and grabbed a handful of Hinata's hair. She yanked and her head was thrown back, face exposed and facing the sky. Tears leaked like rain, and she sobbed quietly.

Karin made a sound of disgust deep within her chest. "I can't believe you're Neji's cousin," she insulted, scowling. "He's talented and smart and good-looking. And what are you?" Her scowl morphed into a twisted smirk. All the Hyuuga wanted to do was cover her ears at the next words... "A _disgrace_."

Hinata whimpered again as the girls around her laughed and cackled with their leader, Kin tugging sharply on her hair periodically.

_Where are you, Sakura-chan?_

"Now your eyes are another matter..."

Hinata felt terror rise up within her. They wouldn't...

"On Neji - oh, wow. Just gorgeous," Karin began, lips curling farther into a smirk. "But on you? Ugh."

Karin walked forward and leaned down to eye level with the sobbing victim. Her hand came up to caress the side of Hinata's face in mock gentle movements. Hinata winced and made a sound of fear, sensing danger in the uncharacteristically soft touches.

A red fingernail trailed from the top of her cheek, down to her chin where fingertips held her pale, tear-stained face up. In a swift movement, those same red fingernails pinched down, squeezing flesh between sharp crescents.

Hinata's mouth fell open in a silent scream, the pain, though small, sending loud alarm-sirens throughout her head. Her tightly closed eyes opened in shock and Karin grabbed Hinata's chin painfully, nails digging into her cheeks once again. She leveled their gazes together.

Bloody, demon-red eyes locked with innocent, angel-white ones. One, threatening. The other, frightened.

"I hate that you share the same beautiful eyes as him," Karin whispered harshly, never breaking eye-contact. She leeched on the fear rolling off of the Hyuuga in waves, and greedily fed upon it, lips thinning into a firm line. Inside, she sought pleasure in the expression Hinata was holding. "I _hate_ it."

Kin tugged sharply once more, which was dull compared to what Karin was doing. The dark-haired follower began to speak, uncertainty present.

"Karin, the bell rang. We need to hurry before Gai-sensei-"

"I'm not afraid of our fag of a teacher," Karin interrupted, deadly gaze momentarily piercing through the air and connecting with Kin's dark one. Hinata felt a little bit of relief once the red eyes alleviated, but had tensed once more. Kin's hold on her hair twisted a bit from the pressure of the red-headed leader's gaze.

"...But-"

"But nothing, Kin."

She left it at that.

"Tayuya."

The other red-head snapped to attention, turning her head. She nodded just barely, enough to show that her attention was being held.

"Come here."

Royal purple pumps appeared in Hinata's line of vision, clacking softly in her ears. Her stare went up and there stood the swear-prone female. The long needle was still in her clutches, but the tip was uncomfortably, dangerously close to Hinata's face. If Tayuya shifted anymore, it would be lodged through her skull.

"Hinata," Karin beckoned, and Hinata wisely craned her neck in her direction. She refrained from wincing at locking eyes with her once again, Hell roaring behind the stare. "This is Tayuya." Her tone of voice was sickly sweet. The way she spoke seemed like she was introducing friends between one another.

When in reality, Karin was introducing Hinata to her torturer.

"Tayuya's cousin is Kabuto Yakushi, did you know that?" Karin asked conversationally, pleasantly. She crossed her arms and paced in a circle around Kin, Tayuya, and Hinata.

Hinata felt sick to her stomach, wondering what this was leading up to. Her silver eyes followed her until she circled behind, then reappeared to her side again - over and over.

"Kabuto-san is Orochimaru's aide. I'm sure you're informed since you have him for science."

Tayuya's grin looked malevolent to Hinata and fear washed through her all over again. Kin was fidgeting anxiously behind her, afraid of being caught, but remembered to pull on Hinata's hair constantly.

"Did you know Kabuto-san studies medicine? He likes to show some of his close friends and family what it's like to help out at the hospital on his free-time."

Tayuya knelt down onto one knee in front of Hinata, the needle extremely close. Hinata tried to move her head away, but Kin held her in place. Another of the followers, owning oddly cut, plum-purple hair and orchid eyes, walked forward with silver duct-tape in her hands - Ami Watanabe.

Hinata continued to let tears fall, and finally found her voice. She pulled her lips back and opened her mouth to scream.

Duct-tape stretching to separate ripped through the air, then covered the sound of Hinata's scream and forced it back inside. She thrashed and struggled, trying to pry the sticky restraint away. Another girl, this one she couldn't see, had tied her hands together with harsh, dull brown rope.

She was completely vulnerable.

"Kabuto-san," Karin continued, the smirk on her face twisting largely, "sometimes gets to see surgeries happen up close."

Hinata barely heard, the only thing in her ears the pounding of her heart. Where was Sakura?!

_I need you! Help me!_

Desperation and wild fear crept up her spine and racked her whole body.

Karin and her cronies were the bullies that got physical with her and Sakura, unlike the other popular kids. Those other people liked to taunt and mock them, shooting them down emotionally. What they were doing now was beyond taking it too far. The only other time they had done something remotely close to this was to Sakura.

It scarred her physically.

Sakura had a long scar running from the top of the right side of her neck, down to the top of her collarbone from the silver scissors used against her during the incident. The mark was barely visible unless you tried to look for it. But the worse part, was that Hinata had been there. She couldn't do anything - couldn't scream, run, or defend.

Hinata had been forced to her knees and watch the whole thing.

Luckily, Kakashi had been passing by, and had stopped the whole thing before any more unnecessary blood spilled. It was the first time the two of them had met him, back in their freshmen year. He became their guardian in school, watching over them.

Karin should have been arrested. But she, too, was a rich child. Nothing could touch her.

"And..." Karin continued, Hinata's muffled hearing zeroing in on her voice unconsciously. "What interested me the most...was the human eye..."

Hinata's eyes widened considerably, realizing what they were going to do. And how they were going to do it. She continued struggling and thrashing about, her screams running out of her lungs, but dying away in her throat and disappearing on her tongue.

But all Karin did was stop pacing in front of Hinata.

"I don't like you sharing the same eyes as Neji. So I'll have to..._take_...them, now won't I?"

Karin licked her lips, and the malicious smirk widened impossibly so. Hinata's fear, pain, desperation took to new heights as the red-head signaled to the other red-head. Tayuya's smirk matched Karin's, and she finally raised the needle.

The tip touched right below Hinata's eye, and it poked just a bit. It was enough to summon a small bubble of blood, escaping and dribbling down like crimson tears.

"This'll hurt like a bitch, I can't fucking lie," Tayuya said, sounding like she cared for Hinata to know. Hinata screamed another muffled scream behind the duct-tape, drowned out by the snickers and cheering on and words of encouragement floating around.

The needle seemed to glide teasingly along the bottom of her eye, and she felt a cut open. The wet, warm liquid of her life essence fell down her cheek in thin trails.

This was it.

It was over.

The needle left her skin for a bit, and Hinata dared to open an eye. Only to see it coming down quickly.

With a final broken, covered scream, Hinata shut her eyes and waited for it to stab and pluck out the only thing she came to cherish about herself. Because of a long time ago...

_"I'm Sakura..." _An offered hand to shake.

_"...I-I'm Hinata..." _A taken hand. A slow handshake.

_"Why...are you covering your eyes?" _A frown.

_"The-They...they scare people..." _A cower away.

_"Why? I think they're beautiful." _Two smiles.

"STOP!"

Hinata's breath hitched, feeling the ice-cold tip of the needle merely two millimeters from her eye. The presence withdrew, and Hinata opened her gaze to the world, craning her neck to take in the scene as Kin's hold on her loosened.

Karin whirled around, glaring with her fiery eyes, probing the area for the one who interrupted her. She retaliated upon seeing the only figure standing before them, surprised it was none other than-

"Haruno," the red-head sneered. But within her tone was shock, and slight puzzlement at the pinkette's actions.

She'd never been so open.

"Let her go," Sakura demanded.

Some of the girls surrounding Hinata gasped at the gravity and force of her words. Sakura's voice had dropped an octave, and was firm and confident - loud compared to her usually soprano-soft tone. A tone that meant business. That she wasn't joking. That some serious _shit_ was about to go down.

"Or you'll what?" Karin dared.

She immediately responded; Sakura's lips pulled back and she let out an inhuman snarl that sent Karin a step further away. Her eyes were lit with a fire that rarely ever appeared, but was always there in its smaller, candle-flame form. It was as if someone had covered a forest in gas and had thrown a match into the liquid, green and red mingling.

Her small, pale hands curled into fists, turning knuckles white. She crouched, ready to attack. Somewhere in her angry, dead-set expression promised a world of pain.

And she never breaks a promise.

"Kami so help me," she began in that low, haunting voice, "I will rip that cheaply dyed, uneven hair out of your _fucking_ scalp and shove it down your _throat_." Narrowed green eyes told she would do _much_ more.

Karin defiantly stepped forward. "I'm not afraid of you, Billboard Brow!" she retorted, red eyes pouring hatred. "Take me on? Fine. But I can't guarantee you won't make it out of here without another _trim._" She sneered and motioned to Ami.

The plum-haired female had an arrogant smirk stretched across her face, and she reached into the back of her bag and pulled out a pair of sharp, silver scissors - the same ones that caused Sakura's scar.

Sakura's fire was doused just a bit, and she moved half a step back at the sight, eyes wide behind her glasses. Karin smirked at the action just as Ami handed the scissors over. She slid her fingers into the black-covered holes and snipped the blades together.

"Remember this, Sakura-_chan_?" Karin continued making snipping motions. "Your hair's really long. Maybe we should give you a _hair-cut_, ne?"

Karin's cronies gasped suddenly, and her idly lolling head snapped to attention just in time to see Sakura drop her backpack, then become a blur of pink - disappearing and reappearing.

Out of nowhere, Sakura had lunged.

The scissors were knocked expertly out of Karin's hands and the two went down, Karin landing on her back painfully. She screeched and began to struggle beneath the lighter girl, putting her expensive manicure to good use. Sakura ignored the long, thin, scratch marks smeared with blood running along her arms and neck and face. Her full focus was on Karin.

With the fire returning twice as large as before, she swung an accurately aimed right fist.

Karin screamed, writhing in pain once the hit connected with the right side of her jaw. She could already feel the bruise forming, a pain blooming right behind her cheek and in her teeth. Blood splattered against the concrete once Sakura's left knee hit Karin in the stomach.

The red-head was already falling off of her pedestal.

Said girl found the mind to fight back and grasped Sakura's shoulders tightly, was twisting her nails into her flesh as if ripping her shoulders away. But Sakura continued with punches here and there, face expressionless but eyes alight.

Hinata was staring at the ordeal. If her mouth wasn't taped down, she would've had it agape. Kin had completely let go of her hair and had stepped away, along with the rest of Karin's followers. They were ready to make a run for it.

"I will hurt you for hurting the ones I love," Sakura murmured, barely audible to others except for Karin and Hinata. The former screamed in response, the hits getting heavier and faster. It didn't seem like Sakura was tiring out very easily, and she had to do something to get out of the deep shit she was in.

Hinata's eyes widened at Sakura's words. The sentence echoed over and over and Hinata felt her eyes water again at the sound of it. She knew Sakura cared for her, but just hearing it...just _hearing_ it was amazing. It brought the sun out in her usually clouded heart._  
_

_I love you, too, Sakura-chan..._

Punches connected with flesh. Kicks connected with bones. Nails scratched at muscles.

This was getting out of hand-

"HEY!"

It was at that very moment where a voice was registered to scream over at them. Movement stopped. Time froze. Breaths were held. Eyes slowly raked over the area where they heard the order, and many were surprised to see just who it was to stop the madness.

The door to the gym swung open and someone strolled out. A tanned and muscular body clad in his gym clothes-slash-workout uniform had appeared. His sun ray-blonde hair was swept in characteristic wisps, messily ruffled to perfection. His clear, sky-blue eyes darkened slightly, narrowing at the sight of blood smeared and fists formed.

Naruto.

"What's going on here?" he questioned, his usually loud voice low with a hint of indifference - his way of being serious. He demanded an answer, silently scanning the faces to commit them to memory in case he had to report this - and he was in the right mind to do so.

He glanced down and was utterly surprised to see Hinata Hyuuga's wide, opalescent eyes staring up at him, mouth duct taped shut and hands bound in rope. But the surprise wore off enough for him to continue staring at the others. Kin. Tayuya. Ami. Eyes trailed further, and he was absolutely. ultimately shell-shocked by then.

Sakura Haruno loomed over Karin, fists formed tightly and hidden-away eyes glowing a bright, vibrant chartreuse. A fire was roaring behind the expression she held, which she directed towards him once his gaze fell on her.

He felt a violent shiver rack up his spine - a sensation he'd never felt before, and it necessarily wasn't a _bad_ feeling.

But then he realized just who these two were. They were the targets of bullying - made so by his friends. He, too, sometimes inputted a couple insults and played along, but never truly meant what he said. Hinata was very pretty, and despite Neji's grudge against her, Naruto found it disrespectful to degrade a friend's relative.

Oh, but Sakura?

True essence of _beauty _in his eyes.

Naruto felt his mind pull into a distant flashback, her fiery gaze sending him into the past.

He and Sakura had gone to the same elementary and middle school together. In elementary, Sakura had been an outgoing, bubbly flower and Naruto was the loner, sitting in the corner and being a so-called 'monster'.

People never let him borrow their crayons. They never offered to sit with him or let him sit with any of them at lunch. And during recess, no one wanted to be anywhere near the swings, not bothering to ask him to play with them. His confidence crippled as the time went by.

The crush formed when she had given him a sunflower on Valentine's day.

It was a sunny day, the tree near the swing he was at shading him from the light. His eyes were on his dangling feet, expression downcast. But footsteps were nearing him, and he was surprised to see his quite popular classmate trotting up to him, a ring of flowers strung on her head.

She paused in front of him and curiously stared, flustering Naruto. And then she extended a hand with a big, bright yellow flower. He looked up at her, silently probing for an answer.

_"You're always lonely..."_ she had told him. _"It's weird. No one got you anything, so here... Your hair reminds me of sunflowers. So smile brightly!"_

She grinned an illuminating grin that washed away the sorrow within him the moment it appeared.

The crush developed a little bit more in middle school. They were separated often because Sakura was always in higher leveled, advanced classes, and was constantly knee-deep in homework to keep up with studies and learning the basics of being an heir to her family's company. But still, during the sixth grade, they had formed an inseparable bond that kept them close, even though it wasn't necessarily the same kind of bond Naruto wished for.

Even then, they went out together to the park, to see movies, to just hang out. She tutored him a few times, too, sometimes utilizing that as an excuse to come over to each other's houses.

It was in seventh grade where they drifted.

A new school year presented the opportunity of a lot of new students. It was the year Naruto met Sasuke, and Ino, and Gaara, and all of the rest of them; Hinata was included in the group. They befriended him easily. Naruto tried to spend time with Sakura, while balancing his time hanging out with the others.

It all fell apart eventually.

He found out they were, not only the ones teasing Sakura, but they were also the ones who started the whole 'make fun of the pink-haired girl'. Naruto had found it funny at first and played along, thinking Sakura would just take all of the teasing as jokes and ways to have fun.

But she didn't.

She broke away from him completely, and like a ghost, Hinata followed her because they were one and the same by then. When she was questioned, she had only told him that she was inheriting her family's business and had to study harder. That there was no time to make friends and distract herself with pointless relations.

He never believed her.

The joking, the teasing, the bullying - it all stuck. And it'd been like that halfway into the seventh grade, up till now in their Junior year.

His father took over one of his cousin's companies, and cultivated it, spreading it further and further, making the name bigger and bigger, working harder and harder; until the company was a force to be reckoned with. Naruto studied more, keeping up with slightly above average grades to stay in different athletic curriculars. He got rich. And he fit in with the rest of his friends, becoming worship-worthy and popular.

So here she was, the source of his guilt-ridden nightmares and thoughts. Sakura: timid, shy mouse turned to Hellcat.

"What's going on here?" he repeated, voice alleviating a bit in pressure. The suffocating atmosphere lessened slightly in response to the notion.

Karin screeched - the first sound made after several moments of silence. She grabbed Sakura by the shoulders while she was distracted, and flipped her over. Sakura's back hit the pavement above Karin's head with a dull thud, and Naruto resisted the urge to help her.

The pinkette didn't make a sound once she landed, and merely rolled onto her side to push herself into a sitting position. The fire was doused just a bit.

"Naruto-kun!" Karin screamed, throwing herself against Naruto and hugging his neck. He only looked down at her - the same look he gave her whenever she felt the annoying need to cling onto someone and gain some sympathy. "She hit me! Look at me! I'm hideous!"

Naruto bit his lip. This was the _perfect_ opportunity for a comeback. It would be a stretch but-

"You look no different then."

The sentence hung in the air, boiling in silence. Sakura made the first move while she was still sitting, her back facing the rest of them; she snorted, amused. Karin turned as red as her hair after realizing what he had said, clashing horrendously with the black and blue bruises littering her body. Her red eyes narrowed into deadly slits, and she harrumphed, setting down the fist she had been ready to swing at Naruto.

He smirked lazily, watching Karin throw a tantrum. She glared with the heat and force that rivaled Sasuke's Uchiha Glare. With a click of her tongue, she and her cronies had begun to walk away, Kin and Tayuya supporting Karin as she limped. The red-head cast a look over her shoulder, throwing it at Hinata, then settling on Sakura like hot coals.

"We're not over yet."

Sakura's fire lit a bit, and she met the gaze head on. Karin flinched at the hard, determined look.

"Couldn't have said it better myself."

The clique left without another word and Sakura had gotten up, dusting off imaginary dirt away from her clothes. She ignored Naruto all together and quickly walked over to her best friend. She bent down and let her nimble fingers slip in between the knots in the rope binding Hinata's wrists together, looking for loose connections and yanking it apart.

The two began working on the duct tape when Naruto spoke.

"Long time, no see, you guys," he said slowly, testing out the waters.

It seemed like no one heard him - like he was talking to empty air. He received no reply, and only watched. The two molded together in an embrace, Sakura holding Hinata close and whispering words of reassurance while Hinata cried softly into her shoulder. Naruto's gaze softened at the sight.

He definitely felt like a monster now.

"That...was surprising of you, Sakura-chan..."

Sakura slowed a bit in rocking the two of them back and forth, but didn't look up. She remained quiet for a bit, then parted her lips to speak. "When did I give you permission to call me that?" she murmured softly, almost sounding regretful.

Naruto didn't know if she felt regret. But he sure as hell felt regretful, himself. His heart clenched when she asked him that question. Swallowing thickly, he replied, "I've always called you that."

Sakura's hands tightened on Hinata's shoulder and the girl had stopped making noises to listen.

"Stop it."

He smiled a humorless smile. "Old habits die hard."

Sakura sighed, heavy and exasperated, and stretched out. She seemed tired, but not physically. "What do you want, Naruto?" she asked, rubbing Hinata's shoulder soothingly. She had stopped crying altogether and was only hiccuping softly, trying to be quieter.

"...Are you going to Sasuke's party?"

It was off-topic, but he felt the need to know. He heard that the two had received an invitation, but he needed to hear whether or not she was going. But Sakura remained unaffected, though she was also silent.

He knew she wouldn't talk. Not that same way she used to talk to him.

"...Come with me..."

Naruto first picked up Hinata's backpack, and then Sakura's, slinging them both over either one of his shoulders. He strode over to the pair and helped them up, carefully holding them both by the elbow. The cuts on Hinata's face were prominent then, and he stared harshly at the blood - both wet and dried - smeared on her face.

"Where are you taking us?" Sakura questioned, begrudgingly following him. His hard stare moved to fall on her, and he felt the guilt curl around his heart again.

She didn't have her eyes threatened to be plucked out, but she looked like she was in worse shape than Hinata. Bruises formed flowers of pain along her pale skin, enhancing the darkened colors. Hairline, but nasty and numerous cuts from Karin's nails littered here and there, some thin and only red, others bleeding or had already bled.

And yet, she was still beautiful.

He found his voice seconds later. "The nurse." He paused, then added as an after thought, "And I'll make sure Karin gets in a bit of trouble."

Her expression turned alarmed. "Naru-"

"I'm doing this willingly, Sakura-chan," he replied, cutting her off sharply. He wanted some justice to be served.

Karin might be of the same 'species' as him in school (i.e. popular), but she wasn't his friend. She was just some clinging, high-middle class, over-pampered, self-centered bitch. Just another ultimate fangirl who didn't necessarily use the same tactics as the rest of his fangirls, but was one anyways.

He stopped them on their trip, and he nodded to Hinata, steering back on topic. "Go on ahead, Hinata. We'll meet you there." He handed Hinata her bag when he deemed it safe to hand over. Sakura took hers back as well, glaring at him slightly at warding off her best friend away. He ignored it.

Hinata smiled gratefully, holding her backpack close. She turned on her heel and stalked away, disappearing around the corner.

Once she was out of earshot, Naruto immediately turned to Sakura, his larger hand clamping close around her forearm. He pulled her into his chest and drew her into a much awaited hug. Sakura gasped, both in pain and surprise, but he only tightened his hold and breathed her in, in response.

She smelled like dirt, blood, cement, and Karin's over-the-top perfume, but somewhere within the mixture of scents, Sakura's smell was there. It was a light, chocolate smell mixed with strawberries.

People often wondered why he was so addicted to either one, whenever it came to things other than ramen.

He inhaled slowly, deeply, relishing the feel of her against him. It'd been so long since he'd hugged her like this. She felt softer against him, though, more feminine and developed. Right now, he was in heaven. And he took pleasure in seeing her blush at the proximity, the intimacy of his actions.

"Naruto! L-Let...Let...GO!"

She pushed against him, and successfully shoved him away, face flushed from anger or embarrassment. But he only remained intoxicated by the scent he missed all this time. She was panting, angrily glaring at him. At that moment, Naruto couldn't help but muse at one another's actions - it was like they had _kissed_ instead of merely hugged.

He approached her again and she responded by moving a step away, her back hitting one of the round, teal green lunch tables sitting outside in the quad. Naruto's left hand brushed past her right hip and he shivered at the contact. It was a wonder how the slightest touches could provoke some sort of wanting within him.

God, he missed her.

He leaned forward, slowly closing the gap between them and head dipping. Sakura's eyes widened, all coherent thoughts thrown out a figurative window. What the hell was he doing?! He leaned closer and closer, bodies touching and his right hand coming up, brushing against her shoulder.

Was he seriously going to-?

Oh. My. Jeezus.

Closer...closer..._closer_-

Naruto's right hand went further, past her hair, and reached into her backpack. His left hand dug into the pocket of his sweats and he yanked out a round stamp. His right hand that had disappeared into the backpack slung over Sakura's shoulder was pulling something out - the golden invitation she hated so.

Sakura's eyes warily watched Naruto pull away just slightly. He turned it over and checked the front for her name, then flipped the flaps open. He skimmed the words, taking in Gaara's stamp. With a pop signalling him opening the cap of his stamp, he grinned cheekily at nothing in particular, and pressed the inked end against one of the empty spaces.

He closed his stamp and flipped the envelope's flaps back into place, smoothly setting it in between Sakura's fingers. She automatically held it in her grasp.

Naruto grin shifted into a smirk, eyes gleaming with unhidden mischief. "I'm going to go check on Hinata. Hurry to the nurse, or I'll leave you behind!" His smirk widened and he turned away. Quickly - and almost incoherently - he added: "I hope you can come to the party!" He spun on his heel before Sakura could hit him, and sprinted away.

But she was far from thinking about hitting him. She was in too much shock. Sakura's mouth was agape, staring at the space he'd been taking up earlier. What in God's name...? She felt a weight in her hand and remembered the invitation. Her gaze trailed down at the envelope and she flipped it open, needing to see what he did for herself.

_'Dear Sakura Haruno,_

_You have been invited to Sasuke Uchiha's Halloween Party.  
_

_Be prepared in a complete costume and dress accordingly.  
_

_Please come with this invitation along with the complete five stamps below.  
_

_Your progress:  
_

[_**G.S.**_] - [_**N.U.**_] - [ ] - [ ] - [ ]

_See you soon.'_

"Bloody hell," Sakura whispered to herself, the dark gold-colored stamp drying quickly. "Two stamps down..._already_?"

When did she get so lucky?

Like a bullet train hitting a building (with her as the building), Sakura remembered the pain in her back at that exact moment, and cursed her slowness and poor reaction time. Quickly, she refolded the envelope into its usual closed form, slipping it into her backpack. With practiced ease, she swung her backpack back over her shoulder, narrowly missing where it hurt the most.

She half-limped, half-dragged herself to the nurse, turning red while she walked through the halls. She had to go see Naruto after that almost-kiss!

How the hell was she going to explain her odd behavior in the nurse's office to Hinata?

Well...life sucked pretty bad right then.

* * *

**•** **Okay, so if you didn't check back, yes, I realized that I got the date of Halloween wrong. It falls on a Wednesday this year. Can someone confirm this? My sister's putting random dates into my head and I don't trust the internet sometimes -_- So because of this, yes, there will be SIX CHAPTERS INSTEAD OF FIVE! My apology gift ^^****•**

******•** Anyways, yay! Sakura gets another stamp :P Hurrah! **•**  


******•** I decided that the general theme here is a little drama with some bullying to really show what Sakura and Hinata go through coming from Karin. Karin's the one that likes to take advantage of bullying them, unlike the others who just tease and insult and shove them occasionally, or hide their stuff. **•**  


******•** So yeah. I hope you all liked it! And _damn_, this was a long chapter. 6k+ words XD **•**  


******-burrblefish**  


******P.S. If you had any questions in the previous chapter, I hope this one answered them. If not, you can go ahead and drop a PM or review and ask me again ^^  
**


	3. Chapter Three

**• Part One of the 'Holiday Series' •**

**• Rated T •**

* * *

**• STAMP •**

* * *

**• Chapter Three •**

* * *

**-WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 10TH, 2012-**

Hinata was absent today. So Sakura was alone. _Alone_.

Being alone was a nightmare for someone like her. Being alone meant you were open - you were _vulnerable_. This was why neither of them tended to be absent too much. But today was a different story.

The said pink-haired girl was walking down the hallway, sneaker-clad feet padding against the ground in soft, barely audible footsteps. She stuck to the lockers, making sure to keep her eyes on her feet. Left, right. Left, right. A rhythm appeared unconsciously in her mind and she followed it, ignoring the world rushing by around her.

Laughter, chatter, and mindless ruckus whirled around like a kid on a sugar buzz, but the sounds fell upon deaf ears. She only kept her gaze down, not making eye-contact, not lifting her chin, not doing anything. At that moment, all Sakura wanted to do was get out of the suffocating hallway.

The rhythm was too slow, so she picked up the pace and walked faster, careful to tread glued to the walls and steer clear of anyone pertaining to the popular species. That was her current quest. To distract herself, she began counting to ten in her head in different languages.

Distraction successful.

Excessively flowery, expensive perfume filled her nostrils, and she knew who was coming by.

"Oh, I'm going to that party. I didn't need all five stamps because I'm already a part of the party planning committee," someone said, the voice clear and confident and _overly_ familiar.

Giggles, sighs, and exclamations of joked irritation fluttered like a hurricane, centered around the one person speaking. A popular, wasn't it? Sakura couldn't resist and lifted her eyes just a bit to confirm who she thought it was. She was right.

Screw the distraction.

Perfect, platinum blonde hair sprouted from her scalp, gathered at the top and pulling into a violet hair-tie. The hair continued into a waterfall of straightened, silky perfection, washing down to the small of her back. Back at the top, the one, strong bang fell smoothly, swooping over her right eye, and moving slightly away to follow the curvature of her jaw. The naturally dark pink lips were glossed over; following that was a princess-like nose, high cheekbones, and long, dark lashes fluttering over deep, sapphire blue eyes.

Slightly tanned, flawless skin stretched over the ideal model figure. A fitted amethyst-shaded halter top wrapped her torso, accentuating her curves, but not looking too skimpy. The hem of the shirt stopped in light waves, showing a thin band of skin before disappearing into dark washed skinny-jeans and a violet belt. Dark purple pumps completed the look, matching her bag of the day.

She was _beautiful._

Ino Yamanaka.

The blonde girl walked with the air of a model, strutting as if she were on a cat-walk. She was flanked on all sides by her followers and was chatting animatedly, not a care in the world in her eyes.

Despite the bitter hatred Sakura felt for any kind of popular person, Ino was someone she sort of respected. Sure, Ino did accept compliments and even expected them while she passed. But whenever she talked to people who were only in it for the money and leeched off of her popularity, she seemed detached.

She didn't care for posers.

Back to reality, Sakura was yanked straight out of her thoughts and violently re-awoken. By sharp, blue-bell eyes.

Time seemed to slow down once Sakura's eyes locked with another's. Ino was staring at her, but her gaze was not at all malevolent. How _odd_. She looked more...probing? Analyzing? And date she say it... _Curious_?

The moment was shattered once Sakura found the ground with her gaze again, looking back down. She felt her glasses slide down slightly, but she wasn't in the right mind to push it back up. She had to get out of this hallway. Fast.

Some sort of Kami up there seemed to hear her prayers. Sakura finally reached the door leading out of the hallway, feeling Ino's gaze tear away from her slowly. Sakura flowed with the crowd, streaming outside and trying to stay away from people entering to avoid a jam.

She followed the students, walking down the steps in quick, easy strides to keep from blocking the walkways. Her mind was set on following the people in front of her, recognizing them as part of her math class. But her feet had another idea. They detached her from the crowd and instead, began taking another familiar route.

Sakura's legs pulled her away from near the entrance of the school, where her math class's hallway was, and rounded around. She was heading closer towards the back where her sanctuary was.

The path went from stone to dirt, and she knew that the gardening club's greenhouses and outdoor gardens were nearby. The dirt led up, passing the cafeteria, the gym, and the main offices. Sunflowers, daisies, poppies, dandelions began sprouting around the pathway, morphing and growing into bigger gardens. And finally, Sakura saw the highlight of the area.

A round, pale-grey fountain made of stone was in the middle of the giant dirt circle. The intricately carved-in designs led up to the top where a cherub held an empty cornucopia to his mouth, liquid pouring out. Crystal clear, pearl blue water rippled in light waves around inside the giant bowl, glittering coins sitting beneath the surface.

Surrounding the area were different flowers that, instead of creating an ugly, oddly mixed smell, only created a perfectly blended arrangement of scents. It all complimented each other.

A breeze blew by, ruffling the flowers. Dandelion tuffs flew around, creating a softer scent.

Sakura, completely enamored by the simple beauty, giggled as the tuffs caressed her skin in a light, calming, gentle manner. She breathed in the fresh air, and exhaled.

Her feet led her further, and she sat down on the fountain's rim, setting her bag down. She winced just sightly when her wrist was yanked a little too roughly by the strap, but the pain disappeared as quickly as it had come. Sakura ignored it, and only turned her body around, laying.

She matched the shape of the outer rim of the fountain, finding comfort in the slightly chilled stone. Her eyes drifted close, finding some sort of comfort for once. At that moment, the bell had rung its shrill, alarming cry, signaling the start of fifth period.

But it was ignored.

Silence dusted the area, only the slight rustling of the breeze brushing past flowers and plants the lone sound present. It was a nice change from Naruto's constant - and loud - pestering.

Sakura's mind froze, then unconsciously re-ran through the past week. Everything that had happened so far suddenly pulled up like walking into your own surprise birthday party.

Oddly enough, Naruto had kept his word about busting Karin and getting her in some trouble - something she deserved after all of the countless times she had bullied her and Hinata into seriously thinking about dropping out of school and taking on companies without an education.

Karin was put on a two-week suspension and would have to attend after-school detention the week she would come back. Tsunade was so pissed at her for screwing with her favorite students, and Kakashi had become some sort of sociopath, hunting down the red-head once he heard about the news.

So now, Karin was scared shitless of the scarecrow teacher.

But ever since the encounter, Naruto hadn't stopped bothering them. At. All.

And damn, was Sakura getting irritated. Hinata was afraid of all of the sudden attention, which Sakura took care in protecting her from. Besides, Naruto usually bothered her instead of the Hyuuga.

During the occasional times where she wouldn't react, he would turn and bug Hinata. That was where Sakura drew the line.

The last time he picked on - and supposedly "joked with" - Hinata, Sakura had kicked his ass to Hell and back four times before sending him sky-rocketing into Suna head-first. Though luckily, today was Naruto's birthday. Which meant that every time he'd try to get close to Sakura and take advantage of Hinata's absence, he'd get swept away in another mob of fangirls and fanboys, all to give him presents.

"Nnngh..."

It was a short, masculine sound, groggy and slow. But just at the sound of it, Sakura felt a violent tremor rack through her body, shaking her spine and skull. A mind-numbing fear trembled within her, freezing her on the spot. Someone was here. Someone would see her. Someone would _see her_.

But just _who_ was here at this time?_  
_

She jumped slightly, hearing another groan resound almost zombie-like and slow. It was a deep voice - a male, most likely - and it rumbled with a roughness only present after being awakened from a nap. The pink-haired female felt her brain drop down to one conclusion. Could it be...?

Sakura stilled, hoping whoever it was would ignore her. Wouldn't notice her. The number of colorful flowers around would surely veil her presence, even with her outrageous hair, right? _Right?_ Right...

But she wasn't right, was she?

A creaking - like wood - was heard within fifty feet in front of her, and Sakura braced herself for the worst.

"Ugh...What the-? I'm in the garden. I thought I was on the roof? How troublesome..." the unknown person mumbled, the creaking continuing. Whoever this was, he was sitting up.

Sakura gulped, recognizing the lazy drawl, even if it was coated with frustration. The deep, rumbling voice, the tired sprinkle, and the _signature phrase._

There was a sharp crack, and then an intake of breath. He must have cracked his back; he began cursing mildly, fabric shuffling. He was rubbing the offended area, soothing the slight pain.

"Godda-..." He caught himself, just barely. He was staring, filling his time with a long pause. And then a disbelief-filled, "Sakura?" made its way out of his constricting, dry throat.

The pinkette cursed her luck at not being able to just stay still and remain ignored. Deciding there was no point in looking like an idiot, slowly, she leaned herself upwards into a sitting position. She was met with Shikamaru Nara sitting up from his perch on the bench directly across from her, wide-eyed and shocked. How she missed him there when she had entered, she would never know.

He was still the same as he had been when she saw him during second period. His spiked pony-tail was slightly tousled from sleep, and his clothes a bit disorganized. But he was still as - and as odd as this was to admit - _handsome_ as ever. Still the same rugged, rough, but weirdly sexy look matched with his uncaring indifference and then topped with the brain - an unbeatable combination.

Neither knew, but the two sometimes challenged and competed with each other for the spot as number one in the school, often switching. It was why whenever their school bragged about their students, they always said that they had two top students. Because never did only one of them stay at the top for too long. They always knocked the other out of running, but made a comeback - it was a repetitive thing that they sort of didn't want to exactly end.

But right now...was sort of awkward...

"Uh...Nara-san," Sakura addressed, nervously brushing her candy-floss hair away from obstructing her face. She absently pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose, gluing her emerald gaze to the pavement beneath her feet and avoiding his stare altogether..

But Shikamaru's eyes watched her every move and remained wary. At the same time, he set both of his feet down onto the ground and off of the bench, waiting for her to do anything brash. He watched Sakura through his dark, creamy mocha eyes, analyzing her and measuring the chance of her running away suddenly.

"What are you doing here?" he inquired, his tone calm and collected, and not giving away his wonder.

Sakura only continued staring at the leaf-cluttered ground next to her shoes, feeling too flustered and embarrassed to glance up. She moved slowly and surely, like a snail.

Her slim, pale wrist appeared beneath the long sleeve shirt she was wearing, reaching down towards her backpack. Shikamaru made sure to not miss a detail, staring at how she was grabbing for her bag. A gold glint distracted him momentarily, and he stood, shocked.

"Sakura, that invi-"

She cut him off sharply. Without a word, she got up, snatching her bag and flinging it over her shoulder. She surged on with the ferocity of a tiger, rushing out and away. Anywhere - she just needed to _leave_.

Shikamaru panicked, afraid she'd reveal his sanction. He got up, rushing forth after her. "Wait!" His strong, firm hand clasped around her wrist, tightened to the point where she had to turn around. She spun, turning to face him, and he grabbed her around the waist and pinned her to him. He _could not_ risk his hiding spot getting exposed.

A gasp escaped her chest without warning and her eyes widened. He didn't seem to notice their proximity...

He was just so damn _close_.

Shikamaru finally felt the softness of her body squished against him. Despite the situation, he knew it wasn't right to have her so flush against him. Not when her expression was looking like that. He reluctantly let her go, slipping his hands back away from her personal space. His lips parted just barely, and he muttered, "Ah...sorry..."

Deciding to give her back her space even more, he quietly stepped back, looking away from her. After he shifted, Sakura finally realized it and awkwardly also took half a step back, gaze landing on her feet with mild difficulty. It was hard brushing off something like _that_.

It was silent for several moments.

Shikamaru moved his weight from foot to foot, careful not to make his anxiety too noticeable. This was a girl he admired only from afar. He'd always admired her ever since she had managed to steal the number one spot back from him the moment he had transferred and taken the title. He never admitted it, but he acknowledge her more and more to the point of curiosity.

He ended up wanting to know more about her.

But he was blowing it now. His one chance to finally talk to her face to face instead of talking to Naruto about her, and he was ruining it. He had to say something and save himself from sinking any further like the Titanic.

Fast.

"Um...Sakura...I-"

There was a crash, and then something like a textbook was thrown in their direction. Shikamaru narrowly missed it, and the heavy book hit the base of the fountain, shaking the cherub a bit and sending the water swishing around.

Both of their gazes turned to their assaulter, and eyes widened at spotting the person. The dark, plum-purple hair pulled into a fluffy pony-tail, with matching dark eyes tinted slightly with a crazed look - the features of one of the school's psychotic teachers, Anko Mitarashi.

"HEY! NARA! HARUNO! GET TO CLASS!"

The woman was screaming profanities at them, demanding them to get back to their classes, otherwise they'd been in for a nice time in detention. She yelled about if they didn't get their 'asses back to their assigned class' that she would 'chop off' Shikamaru's 'family jewels and replace his eyes with them' - give of take a few words.

And the Nara was scared like hell. Shikamaru did the next best thing. Unconsciously, he reached forward and snatched Sakura's slender wrist, ignoring the softness of her skin with difficulty.

With her hand in his, he turned and ran out of the other exit, Sakura in tow.

"Wait!" Sakura cried, running and keeping up. His suddenness wasn't exactly appreciated right now.

But Shikamaru only continued, strong legs carrying him further and further away from the garden. Inwardly, somewhere in the back of his mind, he was shocked at how Sakura could keep up with his pace, especially since her strides were shorter than his because of the difference of height. She had always been the shy bookworm, teased and bullied and pushed around.

Maybe she could run this fast because his friends always went after her?

Ouch. He made sure not to slow down, but he slightly lost focus on running. For whatever unknown reason, his heart clenched painfully at the thought. Was that why she could run so fast? To get away from the torture his friends could be putting her through?

Gaze hardened, grip tightened, he ran with a new-found fervor.

And Sakura could only run along behind him, matching his strides with quicker ones of her own. But why was his pace increasing?

"HEY! STOP!"

Suddenly, she remembered why they were rushing so heatedly. Anko was hot on their heels, screaming and cursing at them to stop running. Apparently, she was waving another textbook and was ready to aim and fire.

"This way..."

The order was barely audible, but Sakura didn't miss a beat in suddenly curving right then turning left, still following Shikamaru evenly.

They passed the cafeteria and attempted to hide out in there. But Jiraiya was inside, and they _really_ didn't want to walk in on him doing anything..._scarring_. The hallways and the offices were a no. And running inside the gym would only have them come face to face with Gai.

So they ran around the gym and moved into the back near the equipment room.

Anko's screams died out near the hallways, so they assumed they were safe - for now.

But once they had come around towards the back of the gym, Sakura deemed it the right time and suddenly yanked her arm back, effectively stopping them both. Shikamaru's hold on her broke, and he gasped, then leaned back onto the wall for support. Sakura dropped onto the ground, sinking to her knees and breathing deep, ragged, broken breaths.

Shikamaru, despite a little miffed at stopping in such a way, was grateful for the intervention. He let the wall support his weight and panted, trying to catch a normal breathing pattern.

Running like that was _hell_.

The awkward silence reared its ugly head once again. This time, though, it was broken relatively quickly, courtesy of-

"Sorry for dragging you with me," Shikamaru apologized quietly, realizing what he had done. It was hasty, and if Sakura wasn't so fast, he could have lost his grip and she could have ended up hurt badly. The thought make his stomach drop, guilt constricting it.

But Sakura didn't look at all shocked or annoyed. Something he didn't know whether or not he should be happy about.

She leaned back until she was laying down, facing up at the clear, azure blue sky that vaguely resembled Naruto's bright eyes. The dewy grass clung to her hair, creating sparkling droplets that glittered in the strands and throwing random colors out. The magnificence, the rarity, of the scene left Shikamaru fascinated. But his favorite part about it was the serene, calm, beautiful smile that drew upon her lips and lighted her face up as if the sun was coming out on his heart; she was the sun.

It was a smile he wished never faded.

He was broken out of the trance when she spoke. "...It's okay," she began, voice soft, but clear like sopranos. "I didn't...mind..."

Shikamaru felt an elation grow inside him, his heart skipping a beat at the sight and sound of her accepting his presence. He, without him knowing, smiled back. It was small, but genuine, soft, and _real_. But then he realized what was happening, and suddenly, he felt sick.

This was wrong.

This should have never happened.

He had to get out of there. Fast. Before he did something he would instantly regret. "...I...need to go..."

But as much as he had to leave, Shikamaru regretted his words instantly. The smile on her face fell into a hard, firm line. "Why?"

An excuse hit him seconds later, but the pang of guilt stabbed through him like a katana blade. "I have to go help out Kakashi-sensei...what a drag..."

He hoped she would buy his excuse. But somewhere, deep inside, he hoped she wouldn't. That she would ask for him to stay a little bit longer.

But she didn't

"...Okay..." she quietly replied, letting him go.

Shikamaru truly didn't want to leave. But he had to. If he didn't, he was afraid his heart would burst out of his chest. This girl was changing him. Everything about him and who he was, was suddenly another foreign language. Whatever Sakura was doing, may it be some sort of Siren spell or witch's magic, he didn't want it to go away - to never end.

In a matter of forty minutes, she became his everything.

Sakura hid her disappointment well, drawing her forearm over her eyes and shielding her gaze. He had to leave. And she couldn't be selfish and keep him here. He was a _popular_, too, as much as she would like to reject the thought. He was also highly important, highly rich, highly adored. He had places to be.

And if he was caught with her doing something like this, then the whole lot of them were screwed.

There was a pause, and then feet shuffling against the freshly cut and watered, winter-green grass. He was walking forward, but then he stopped moving right before her. Something, thicker than paper, hit her stomach, and then she heard a hasty, half-assed 'goodbye'.

Sakura waited for his footsteps to disappear. The soft thudding of his shoes against the grass was dull, and then the padding of it against the concrete faded moments later. She waited a bit longer, then pushed away the parchment sitting on her stomach and hastily got up.

But Shikamaru was no where in sight.

Inside, she was wondering why she was so worked up over Shikamaru and his disappearance. He was important, so it shouldn't be all that odd. And she'd known him for four - maybe five - years already (though not on a personal level). She knew _of _him.

So why was he impacting her like this?

A corner of something poking into her stomach snapped her away from her confused and muddled mind. She looked down at the shining, metallic-colored thing sitting in the grass near her, and she picked it up.

She gasped.

Easily, she recognized the golden tint, the broken Uchiha wax seal, the thick paper: her invitation. Fearing the worst, she flipped the flaps open, and gaped.

There, still drying and in a dark, forest green color, was Shikamaru Nara's stamp of approval.

_'Dear Sakura Haruno,_

_You have been invited to Sasuke Uchiha's Halloween Party.  
_

_Be prepared in a complete costume and dress accordingly.  
_

_Please come with this invitation along with the complete five stamps below.  
_

_Your progress:  
_

[_**G.S.**_] - [_**N.U.**_] - [**_S.N._**] - [ ] - [ ]

_See you soon.'_

No. Fricking. Way.

Sakura's mouth dropped, and she couldn't find it in her to close it.

* * *

Shikamaru was at his locker, having rushed there as quickly as his tired legs could carry him. He was breathing heavily, a bright red blush staining his cheeks.

_'I can't believe I did that...'_ he inwardly thought. He groaned, realizing his odd behavior. He had to gather his composure for next period to save himself from questioning. And he also had to make up some more half-assed excuses since he had _Anko_, of all teachers, next. With a final sigh, Shikamaru then brushed a hand through his standing, but mussed up locks, mind wandering towards Sakura.

How...how cute she was when she seemed vulnerable. How amazing she was physically-wise when keeping up with him while they were running. How gorgeous she was laying on the ground, dewdrops in her hair...-

Another chest-deep sigh. _'Hormones are so troublesome...'  
_

* * *

******• Okay, I totally admit this chapter was rushed waaaaay too much. I'm so sorry about that :/ ********•**

**************•** This might not be a good enough excuse, but I've been going through some personal issues and a teenage crisis at the moment. I just really need to get my self together -_- ******•**  


**************•** I promise I'll revisit this chapter before the next one comes out, and I'll edit this once again and lengthen it. ******•**  


**************•** On a lighter note, another stamp! Oh, and HAPPY BIRTHDAY, NARUTO! (It's his birthday, right? XD) ******•**  


**************•** Thank you, my faithful readers. You're what make this whole thing possible today, even if everything isn't written with my full potential. ******•**  


******-burrblefish  
**


	4. Chapter Four

** • Part One of the 'Holiday Series' •**

**• Rated T •**

* * *

**• STAMP •**

* * *

**• Chapter Four •**

* * *

**-WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 17TH, 2012-**

Hinata's brows creased in concentration, the canvas before her drawing her attention. With practiced ease, she dipped her paintbrush into the pure, solid pink, then reached to dunk the already coated brush once in the white. Carefully, she mixed the offending colors in a separate container, turning the medium pink into a light, baby, petal-pink.

Her brush covered its fine hairs with the color and, biting her lip, Hinata brought the tip up to the top of the canvas in front of her. Hesitation blanketed her shoulders, and she wiped down, painting the outline in.

At the moment, she was sitting in Art class, the final class of the day. First period was truly the only class they could catch a break in. Many popular kids were roaming around in the Art room, and Hinata, for the life of her, was afraid. Paint plus free-time equals her and Sakura getting screwed over.

Luckily, they were too enamored by Art to even bother.

The current assignment that Kurenai-sensei had assigned them was pretty easy, though it proved to be a bit difficult for the Hyuuga, considering the rules. You had to, and this was required, pair up and paint a portrait of your partner. It didn't have to be perfect, but it must at least resemble the object of the painting.

But, see, Sakura was no easy partner to paint.

And Hinata learned that the hard way.

Painting the skin tones in, plus necessary facial structure, features, body posture and clothing was all a breeze. The shading seemed to do itself in, and it all worked out. But once she got to the hair, it all went downhill.

Hinata's brows creased again, and she inwardly cursed, her gaze flickering to the busily working Sakura nearly ten feet away from her, too caught up in her work to hear anything else. Hinata had decided to go for a more natural approach and decided to do her painting of Sakura while she worked.

But right now, she felt she couldn't get the shade of Sakura's hair right.

She knew the color was a cherry-blossom pink, but the color just wouldn't come up, no matter how much she experimented and blended. Too much black, too much brown, too much red, too much white, too much pink. It was either too little, or _too freaking much._ Dammit...she was running out of time.

Maybe...some extreme blending on the canvas would earn her a shade at least _close_ enough to the real thing? Biting her bottom lip again, she dipped the brush into the white once more and painted along the edges of Sakura's hair, softening the harsh pink. Using a thinner brush, she began curving in strands of different shaded hair, trying to achieve some sort of realism.

Footsteps heard. Light and stealthy, and Hinata hadn't noticed until the person spoke up.

"Are you blind? That looks nothing like her," someone piped up from somewhere nearby. Hinata squeaked, gaze darting upwards to first scan Sakura's expressions, measuring whether or not she had heard.

She hadn't heard.

Reluctantly, her pearly eyes turned, to her right. Hinata slowly took in the person who had addressed her, mind sending extremely loud alarming bells at her whole body but being ignored. She trailed up, taking note of the paper white skin and dark choice of clothing. An eternity later, or how it felt, she finally reached the face, she thought, '_I should have known who it was..._'

"Are you deaf, too?" Sai inquired, raising a slender eyebrow.

But for an odd reason, Hinata didn't feel insulted at all. There was no seriousness or intention in his eyes. Only blankness bordered the depths, completely void of any sort of emotion to give him away. He was frowning though, so whatever was bothering him was sort of a _real_ feeling.

"N-No..." Hinata cursed herself for stuttering.

"You're painting Sakura-san, correct?" Sai questioned. His gaze flickered between her painting and the real thing. The corners of his frown deepened, and Hinata felt nervousness creep up her spine.

"Yes..."

"Then why does this look like this, and not like her?"

Hinata flushed on cue, embarrassment ebbing away her self-confidence. She couldn't find it in her to properly give an answer to his rhetorical sounding question.

"I-I..."

He stared expectantly.

But she was saved from speaking by none other than Kurenai-sensei, their art teacher.

Said beautiful teacher brought two fingers to his lips and blew. She whistled once, twice, catching the attention of every student except for Sakura, who was dancing away on her canvas, mind flying to other worlds beyond this one. Whatever was on the canvas remained unseen to any prying eyes. Kurenai-sensei didn't seem to mind her lack of attention, and instead scanned the room for anyone else not looking at her.

Her red eyes finished the once-over, and she hiked up her bag higher over her shoulder, her coat on her person and folders clutched in her hands. She revealed a warm, gentle smile.

"Class, I'm stepping out. My doctor's appointment is around half an hour from now," she began. The class chuckled along with her when she winked and patted her stomach. "I definitely won't make it back before the end of the day to see you all off. So when you finish up your portraits, I want them covered with a clean blanket right here on my desk. Make sure it doesn't rub against the drying paint, if you had chosen to use that." She shifted from foot to foot. "Write your name on the blanket and set your portraits in the back room. Neji has both the key and the marker."

Neji nodded his affirmation when her gaze turned to him. He was sitting at his easel poised as if he were a prince, sitting outside on a bright spring day and leisurely sketching the landscape.

"Is anyone unsure?"

Sai raised his hand at that moment, low but still noticeable. Kurenai-sensei's vibrant stare fell onto him, prying his inquiries and pulling them out. He parted his pale lips and spoke, voice soft.

"Do you want us to keep the canvas on the easel?"

Kurenai-sensei nodded her head just once, which was enough for him. He settled in his seat beside Neji, who Hinata assumed he was painting. They were partners; she could see the ends of long, dark chocolate locks on Sai's canvas from the angle she was sitting at.

Her head turned back to the front, hearing the teacher begin to speak once more.

"Anymore questions?" she asked, silently looking around the room for any confused expressions.

No hands went up. No face revealed anything. She grinned, warm and motherly.

"Good. I'll see you all tomorrow, then. Goodbye!"

She strolled out of the classroom, balancing her stuff. Flipping her long, wavy, dark locks over her shoulder, she passed the doorway and kicked the doorstop into place. Without another word, she disappeared down the hallway.

Hinata stared after her, waiting her for to be gone. Once she was out of sight, her eyes went down onto the messy assortment of different shades of green.

Her next issue.

Frustration took over her body at the sight, remembering just what she had to be doing. With slightly restrained but present grace, she dipped her brush into one of the random green shades. So many - viridian, emerald, spring-green, apple-green, grass-green, forest-green, sea-foam, jade - different shades. She decided that none matched.

None did her justice.

"Hinata-chan...?"

She looked up at the soft, harmonious sound of her name, straight into the eyes with an indescribable color and the object of her frustration.

Sakura looked at her, a touch of worry present in her bright emeralds darkened into a different shade - maybe forest-green? Pine-green? Or maybe a smoky, winter-green?

The pinkette was questioning her, asking her what was wrong, what was bothering her. Hinata only stared back, trying to decipher the color combination of her eyes - to no avail, as expected. She searched and searched, hoping to find an answer in their depths.

Sometimes, without Sakura knowing, Hinata would get lost in her beautiful, uniquely colored pools, enamored in every way.

Sakura fidgeted under the intense stare coming from her best friend. She shifted from foot to foot, waiting for Hinata to snap out of it. But ti didn't seem to happen any time soon. Silently, she filled the awkward quiet by pushing her glasses up. Sakura decided to voice her concern:

"Is everything...okay?"

Hinata nodded right away - maybe a bit too quickly. But if Sakura saw anything wrong, she didn't seem to say anything. The intensity of Hinata's ghostly eyes seem to alleviate, easing the tension greatly. They softened and looked at Sakura directly instead of appearing as if she were trying to peer straight into her soul.

Sakura continued.

"Are you done?"

This time, the navette shook her head. She pointed at her painting, and then Sakura's eyes, huffing just barely.

"I can't find the right shade of your eyes..." she elaborated, flushing slightly when Sakura's inquisitive stare questioned her further. It wasn't a harsh or heavy look, but more warm, curious, and slightly amused.

"I've been told it's a bunch of colors," Sakura replied, musing at the many arguments her old friends would have over the shade of her favorite feature of herself. "I never really cared what they decided."

"But I do," Hinata insisted.

With practiced carefulness, Hinata picked herself up and off her stool. She lightly held Sakura's pale wrist in a loose but firm grip, and pulled her closer so that she could see what Hinata saw as a failure. She couldn't capture her favorite parts of Sakura, and felt self-conscious just having her scan it.

But the pinkette had other thoughts.

Her lips parted in a small gape, eyes widened at the sight of Hinata's painting. It was her, sitting on her stool in front of her easel. She had her back slightly hunched, but not to the point of rudeness. Her hands were up, working on the drawing from all sides, shading and rubbing and blending.

Sunlight streamed like a spiraling halo from the window, throwing different mixtures of colors. Her hair swished behind her in a long waterfall of pink, covering her slightly to give an air of mystery. The eyes that she attempted to recreate were supposed to hold some sort of fire, and she was intently focused on the task at hand.

All in all, it was a sight of behold. Truly, truly magnificent.

"It's beautiful, Hinata-chan," Sakura insisted, voice a small whisper. Awe coated her words and Hinata blushed, brushing her bangs out of her eyes.

"But it's not perfect."

"Hinata-chan, nothing can ever be perfect," Sakura retorted, snorting slightly. She was finally able to avert her gaze, hoping no one saw her gaping like a fish out of water.

She seemed completely oblivious to her surroundings, and Hinata muttered, "...But I think _you're_ perfect..." under her breath.

Sakura's cool green, midday grassy eyes turned to her, questioning with a full throttle of curiosity. "What was that?"

Hinata only smiled crookedly and shook her head, brushing it away. Sakura raised an eyebrow, but let it slide. The Hyuuga opened her mouth. "Have you finished yours?" she asked, changing the subject just a bit. It was Sakura's turn to grin, her pale pink lips stretching over straight, white teeth.

"Yeah, do you want to see?"

Hinata bobbed her head in a nod. Sakura hooked elbows with her and dragged her a few feet away, moving towards her easel. She weaved through the up and moving students who were walking to grab whatever materials, conversing lightly but getting work done - rare in high school, but not rare for such a big-name school filled with heirs and heiresses.

Upon reaching the anointed easel, Hinata took note of the various oil pastels littering the little paint holders, tones smeared here and there on the wood, and raised an eyebrow at it.

"I decided not to paint. It wouldn't dry well if the blanket managed to stick to the canvas," Sakura explained, catching the look easily and giving a meaningful look. "So I did oil pastels."

Hinata smiled. Of course she'd do something _different._

"Can I see?"

Sakura grinned toothily, and pushed her glasses up her nose. She gently led Hinata behind the easel, and the Hyuuga gasped in awe, completely enamored at the portrait.

It was a drawing of Hinata sitting at her easel, painting steadily, but surely. Her face was serene and smooth, colored over in pale ivory tones. Her hair fell down in straight strands of dark silk, shades of dark purple, blue, grey - nearly everything - mixing into the palette to give it a softer, smoother appearance. The best part were the eyes.

Hinata felt jealousy draw up, but there was no ill feeling towards Sakura. She could never learn to feel that way towards her. Amazement hit Hinata, hard.

Her eyes in the drawing had emotions swirling rigorously like a small maelstrom - whether it was possible to capture such a thing in a portrait, she didn't know. The gaze she owned was hard with determination, focused solely on the painting she was conjuring up. With it came a tint of frustration and a sprinkle of pride. But the colors danced together in perfect harmony. Silver moved with light grey, lavender, and pale blue, moving together in gentle twirls.

The beauty that radiated was unbelievably breathtaking.

"It's...-It's...-!"

"Perfect."

The duo froze in mild shock upon hearing the low, deep voice. It was smooth and silky, but devilishly sweet - like honey. The voice of a...a _prince_. One Hinata knew too well.

"...Neji-san..."

The phrase escaped without Hinata's control and she quickly turned around, eyes wide, hands to her lips, and a gasp tipping over her tongue. Silence fell like a thick, iron curtain over the classroom, attention moving towards them quickly. But all Hinata could see were eyes that looked like hers.

One large difference was that his were edged with hardly any emotion, extremely unlike hers. His eyes were calm, collected, but judgmental and watching them closely. The underlying coldness chilled right beneath.

He was the one to make the first movement; he raised an eyebrow.

"..." Hinata couldn't speak. Fear crept up her spine in slow, painful crawls, inching and inching. This was her cousin. The one that hated her and despised her very existence. She was dead weight to him. Pathetic, useless, _weak_.

"...What did you say...?"

Both pairs of pearl eyes darted to Sakura in record speed, hearing the soft question fall from her tongue and spreading into the quiet air. Her back was still to Neji, her whole body facing her drawing of Hinata. But her shoulders were knitted together, tensed and coiled, ready to move.

"I said that your painting is perfect," Neji repeated without missing a bit. His eyebrow arched higher up his forehead, questioning.

"...And I needed your opinion?" Sakura's tone was even, despite her posture. No one could see her face. No one, but Hinata.

Neji noticed Hinata's expression, and he moved his gaze towards her, dissecting her reaction to reach an inference on what would be written on Sakura's face. Confusion hit him internally at her reaction; she was staring at Sakura, horror-stricken. What was going on?

"I figured you needed some sort of boost of confidence," Neji began, still eyeing Hinata's face. "Or are you fine with self-esteem shorter than you?"

Hinata resisted the urge to face-palm at the insult. Sakura's height was an incredibly touchy subject.

She could recall a time where these middle schoolers had seen them in the park and commented on how Sakura was so short, she seemed as if she'd belong in third grade better, with the nose-pickers and booger-eaters. Of course, their asses were dutifully handed to them on a silver platter, an apple shoved in between - traditional pigs.

And it was done with a smile on Sakura's face the whole time.

So right now, Neji was treading on extremely thin ice.

"Repeat that for me, Hyuuga-san."

Oh. _Shit_.

'_Please, just shut up and save yourself, Neji-san!'_

"I said that you. Are. _Short_." Neji smirked just barely. "But your art isn't half bad."

Hinata sighed in relief inwardly, seeing Sakura's emotions pause in their internal riot. Some shock hit her mind, which was enough to steer her thoughts away from anything too violent.

"I think that it sucks to the point where she needs help," Sai commented from his seat at his easel. He was painting away, calmly making brush strokes across his canvas. The heavy, thick tension in the atmosphere strengthened, so heavy it could be held by a giant. The room shook mutely, and the degrees dropped several digits. But this _fucking idiot_ didn't seem to notice in the slightest.

"Mind repeating that, as well?" _If you fucking dare, you son of a douche-bag_. Sakura kept her tone civil, but that ending thought was quickly cut off before escaping past her lips. If she didn't hold back now, another bitch was about to go down, coming right after Karin.

Sai sighed exasperatedly, making sure to draw the sound out, and got up from his comfy seat. He dropped his wet paintbrush in the water container and wiped his hands off on his art apron, already covered with countless paint, marker, pastel stains. He brushed his bangs over his eyes, taking his sweet time.

His legs turned just slightly, and carried him closer to where Sakura was, standing a few feet away from a wary Neji.

Sai cleared his throat, slightly mocking, and with a smirk, repeated his words:

"I think that your drawing _sucks_ to the point where you need_ help_," Sai chanted. "And obviously, your sight needs to be checked as well."

His dark, obsidian gaze moved from the back of Sakura's head, passing the portrait, and fell on a frightened Hinata. Her fear doubled, seeing him lock eyes with her. He scanned her up and down, left and right, and frowned. Deep and condescending.

"You need a prettier model. Otherwise, your drawing tanks because your model is _ugly_. Besides, the white eyes are so alien. Freak, much?"

Hinata had tears springing, blurring her sight. She felt her confidence chip off in chunks instead of little peals - at least the latter was something she could endure and heal from over time. Snickers, all barely contained and not even attempted to hide, were flying around the room like fruit flies, buzzing annoyingly. And Sakura was shaking; from laughter?

The tears spilled without restraint. Sakura was laughing at her? She...she _knew_ she was ugly?!

"Shut up, Sai," Neji smoothly shot back.

It quieted down immediately. Was Neji defending his cousin? How odd. These two were known for the bad blood between them...so...? Sai raised a dark eyebrow.

"Why? I thought you _hated_ your useless cousin?"

Hinata let a sob slip.

"I may not exactly like her, but she shares my family blood and name." He glared, twin pools of ice cold ivory clashing violently with careless, stoic obsidians. "When you directly insult her looks, especially her eyes, you insult her name. _My_ name."

Sai stared back, unfazed.

"Why, is it not true?" His lazy stare, piercing and smothering yet frightfully empty, turned to Hinata. She flinched, trying to cover her tear-stained face from his prying, disapproving eyes. "You're weak, you know. Neji talks about how useless and pathetic you always are. And to add to it, is that fact that you are _ugl-_"

A small, lithe body moved away from Hinata's right, and Sai paused to stare. Neji also fixed his gaze on the moving nymph. But she was fast, and all they could catch was a flutter of long, cherry-pink strands.

And then Sai was body-slammed.

He was airborne, soaring through the room then landing up against the wall. Girls shrieked and guys yelled in shock, all backing away to avoid getting hit themselves, but leaning over to check and see if he was injured. Sai's ears were ringing too loudly to hear anything, and his body was still registering what his mind was also trying to comprehend.

Sakura Haruno - shy, quiet, nerdy mouse - _body-slammed_ into him.

What. The. Hell.

Sai was picked up by the collar seconds later. Sakura's pale, ivory hands had curled around the collar of his shirt, grasping the cloth tightly and lifting him up from his laying position.

He struggled, flailing his arms and trying to pull her hands away. But her small, elven-hands held him in a death grip.

"Let me go, you ugly bi-!"

His words got stuck in his throat at the sight of her eyes. Fire burned behind the emerald front, igniting like a demonfyre shaded green. They glowed with so much vibrancy, so much beauty, so much anger, that Sai was simply amazed and awestruck, too distracted that he forgot to be afraid.

She was beautiful...

What the hell was he thinking?

He blinked once, and realized he was airborne again; Sakura had _thrown _him and he was headed near where Neji and Hinata were.

Sai landed with a sickening thud, feeling his bones and muscles shake under the pressure of the were ringing again. All of this seemed like it was happening in slow motion, yet still going too fast for him to even understand.

Sakura stalked towards him like a predator advancing towards her prey, students parting like the Red Sea and watching for her next move. Her fire never died as she walked with confidence, feet padding in muted taps so deafeningly silent against the floor.

Hinata felt a shriek rise but lodge in her throat, and Neji took one wary step back unconsciously.

Dark eyes panicked and searched for a way to evade her, afraid of what she would do next. And this time was real, something he couldn't help but muse despite his position. _'So this is what _fear_ feels like?__'_ Sai bit the inside of his cheek, seeing her get too close for him to even try and run around her.

And then something gold and rectangular caught his eye, sticking out of Sakura's bag.

He reached towards it, already knowing what it was. Sai yanked it out and Sakura froze in her tracks, eyes wide. He held it out, shoving it in her face as best as he could from his position on the ground, showing it off for the classroom to see. Many gasped at a time, shell-shocked.

"I'll stamp this," Sai warned, as if it were something unwanted. Which, he knew, was true for Sakura. "I know you don't want to go to a party filled with your most hated enemies."

Sakura wavered in her step, losing some of her pride, and she creased her eyebrows together, suddenly conscious of what she was doing. An indescribable feeling moved up from her gut into her brain, registering everything. Unwillingly. What the...?

Sai, despite the situation, smirked like the jerk he was, and flipped the envelope open. He reached into his jeans' pocket and pulled out his stamp, smoothly popping the cap off.

"I'm going to do it anyways."

The stamp smelt of fresh ink, and it slowly descended upon the paper.

Sakura surged forward in a split millisecond before the two items could touch, sealing her fate. She threw a well-aimed punch, straight for Sai's nose. A sickening crunch resounded across the silent room, and Sai was tackled into the ground, the envelope thrown up into the air.

And landing into another's hands.

Sakura straddled Sai at the waist, throwing punches that held a ferocity behind each swing. She made sure to hit hard and fast, a deadly combination. Sai grunted with each landed hit, struggling to dodge and get free but also protecting his vital organs - and his face.

But that was already ruined with the first hit.

"This is for calling Hinata ugly!"

SMACK!

"This is for leading me on!"

CRACK!

"And this...! Is for trying to GIVE. ME. A. _STAMP!_"

BAM!

Sai was unconscious by the end of it, and Sakura had hot tears falling down her face. The emotions that stormed like a maelstrom within her were released like a dam and broke through her front, crushing passed the barriers she built up to shield herself.

She was exposed.

Something gold. Something new. Something hated. Fell into her lap once she backed away and sat down.

Her bloodied knuckles brushed against it, dirtying it slightly but barely, and she gripped it without thinking.

The tears that fell upon the metallic sheen threw golden dusts of light across her cheeks, bringing out the goldenrod flecks of color in her eyes. It was further enhanced by the glassing of the crystalline tears falling in thin, liquid trails.

Neji walked passed her with a sigh, picking Sai's knocked out form up from the ground and slinging him over his shoulders. He adjusted him to stay more comfortably, and shot a glare at the class. "Sai tripped and fell against the sink and hit his head against the counter, alright?"

It was silent for a few moments. He pressed the question again.

"_Alright?_"

His tone was commanding and cold, borderline threatening, and people murmured agreements out of fear.

Neji's ivory eyes fell on Sakura still on the ground, expression frozen in surprise with eyes wide. Tears still fell, but slower than before. With very little difficulty, Neji leaned down, Sai still slung over him, and lifted her chin up with his slender fingers.

Her green eyes melted into a soft sea-foam shade, and Neji's unconsciously did the same, ice turning to soft cotton colors.

"You may not want to be there. But judging from the stamps, many want you to. Including me."

He did the unthinkable.

He leaned in, the few inches it took, and brushed his soft lips against hers ever so slowly. It was gentle, a simple peck. But it was enough to have Sakura's heart leap straight out of her chest. Her brain shorted out, completely frazzled. _'What the...?!'_

Sakura began to blush wildly when he leaned away, smirking smugly in that sexy way of his that usually had girls swooning and guys envying. He straightened to his full height, glanced at her one more time, then left the room to bring Sai to the nurse and explain his 'clumsy accident'.

It remained silent as Sakura remembered what was in her hands, and unfolded the envelope, students too stunned to move.

_'Dear Sakura Haruno,_

_You have been invited to Sasuke Uchiha's Halloween Party.  
_

_Be prepared in a complete costume and dress accordingly.  
_

_Please come with this invitation along with the complete five stamps below.  
_

_Your progress:  
_

[_**G.S.**_] - [_**N.U.**_] - [**_S.N._**] - [**_N.H._**] - [ ]

_See you soon.'_

The dreaded invitation. The dreaded words. The dreaded stamp.

But for whatever reason, Sakura didn't feel any fear nor pain nor frustration. For once, there was some sort of...want..._willingness_ to actually go to the party-

_'No! Don't think like that!'_

She shook her head furiously, ridding herself of such thoughts. Gathering her scattered pride and utilizing the remaining will she had, she mustered her ability and pushed herself off of the ground, dusting her jeans off. She swiftly grabbed Hinata's wrist, taking their bags with them.

"I'll label your paintings," Shikamaru offered quietly when they passed his easel on the way out, making himself known to her after a while. Jealousy surged inside him, but it was overrode by something else. He blushed slightly, remembering their encounter, but it disappeared at the look in her eyes.

This was the hellcat Naruto was describing.

She looked at him fiercely, the fiery headstrong-ness in her mesmerizing emeralds leaving him in a state of awe. She said nothing, but he took the thanks she offered silently.

Without another word, she stalked out of the room, shell-shocked Hinata in tow.

And here, ladies and gentlemen, was where a new perspective on the resident nerds was born.

* * *

Someone slipped out of the classroom without anyone noticing. The figure pulled out a phone, dialing a familiar number. On the third ring, the phone on the other side was picked up.

_"Hello?"_

"I have some news."

_"What is it, Ami? I have no time for this."_

A scowl.

"Just listen. The stupid Haruno has an invitation."

_"...A _WHAT?!_"_

A glare.

"An _invitation._ A golden one."

_"Goddammit! That fucking bitch! Who gave it to her?"_

"No clue."

_"Ugh. How far along?"_

"Four stamps already."

_"From who?"_

"I'm not sure I saw correctly, but there were stamps from Gaara-kun, Naruto-kun, Shikamaru-kun, and Sai-kun just tried to stamp it, but Neji-kun beat him to it."

_"Shit, just one more? That slut is asking for it! Don't let anymore people stamp it!"_

"How do we do that?"

A menacing smile.

_"...Heh, don't worry, Ami. I'm back to school tomorrow. I have a plan."_

"Already? ...Alright..."

_"Oh, yes. Come over tonight, and bring the girls."_

"Will do."

_"See you later, Ami."_

"Bye, Karin-sama."

Let the games begin.

* * *

**************• Whew! Done! It also seems a little rushed, but I'm happy with it. There's a little more going on :) ****************•**

******************************•** Can anyone guess who the last stamp could be? And her mystery man? Kudos to the one who guesses correctly; maybe I'll write you a one-shot :D **************•**  


******************************•** YAY-NESS FOR HITTING THE DUE DATE! AND GETTING ANOTHER STAMP! **************•**  


******************************•** Two more weeks. Can you take the wait? ;) **************•**  


******************************•**See you all soon! **************•**  


**************-burrblefish  
**


	5. Chapter Five

** • Part One of the 'Holiday Series' •**

**• Rated T •**

* * *

**• STAMP •**

* * *

**• Chapter Five •**

* * *

**-WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 24TH, 2012-**

Sakura spit out blood against the cold ground after making sure no one was looking. She breathed heavily, dragging her bag along, feeling the dull ache and painful stinging of her fresh bruises and cuts. Home was merely three blocks away - surely she could push herself 'till then?

Cars sped by, the sun shone brightly with the puffy clouds accompanying it, everything in perfect harmony. It mocked her, and she didn't have the energy to even curse at the world.

But then, like a ton of bricks being thrown at her, she realized that her footing was a little off.

The ground was starting to shake in her eyes, fine detail of the world blurring into incoherent colors and shapes. Everything began to get wobbly - shaking and mixing together - and she struggled to stay on her feet.

Those stupid bullies. Probably Karin's cronies. They had chased her out of school after sixth period's Art class and cornered her. And here, they caught her and gave her another daily dose of beatings.

If only Sakura had enough time to throw a match into the fire. If only she hadn't turned down Hinata's offer of a ride home. If only she wasn't so...so much like an _outcast_.

If only...

"Sakura-chan?"

An alarm rang loudly through her head, but she couldn't tell whether or not it was a good or bad thing. For a split second, the world came into focus, and Sakura could see the healthy sheen of beautiful blonde hair, and dreamy clear blue eyes.

Was that...-?

"Sakura-chan? Are you okay? You look terrible."

The voice was soft and confident, extremely familiar in her ears. But the world was moving out of focus again. More so than before. Sakura felt the blackness coming quickly, so she said what she could:

"Help me...Naruto..."

And then she was swallowed into the nothing called unconsciousness.

* * *

There was the crackling of fire and smell of burning wood - in a comforting way - in the room; that much she could tell. It was warm there, compared to the chilling temperatures beginning to leaf through the winds outside. Sakura vaguely wondered what December would feel like.

After making sure there wasn't another person in the room, she slowly opened her eyes.

It took a while for them to adjust, but she could identify the fireplace across from her when she turned her head to the right. She was laying on a soft, teal blue couch, a pale magenta blanket draped across her body. Someone had changed her from her torn up and dirtied clothes to soft, silk white pajamas.

She leaned up and sat against the arm of the couch, scanning the room. There was a desk - one that would belong in a study - behind the couch, a bookshelf propped next to it and a computer assembled on top. The window directly across from her when she looked forward was closed, dark blue curtains covering the outside. The coffee table beside her had an ice pack and a wet wash cloth soaking in a bowl of water on it. Her bag was also there.

But what caught her eye were the many pictures hanging on the walls. She was without her glasses, having taken them off and putting them in the case in her bag to keep them from breaking should she get cornered.

Just her luck, she did.

But from all of the pictures, she could identify a mix of colors. One that stood out was the familiar blonde and blue - colors she saw right before she had blacked out.

_'Oh my God, am I in Naruto's house?'_ She began panicking. Being in a popular's home without being welcomed by the whole family was a big no-no. She could be _killed_ if anyone found out. _'Dammit, I have to get out of here!'_

Too late.

Footsteps resounded outside the warm room, tapping just lightly. But the silence, save for the sparking embers, was enough to give away whoever was approaching. In a final attempt, Sakura quickly settled back down and tried to regulate her breathing, returning to her 'sleep'.

Whoever it was moved closer, and Sakura could barely contain her heartbeat. She could only pray this person couldn't hear.

The door clicked open softly, and then swung to let the person in. It shut with a light click, and the person shuffled through the room, moving with carefully made steps.

Paper moved, a bag was lifted, and a chair creaked. Sakura figured that they had put their stuff somewhere near the desk. But then the movement ceased, some sort of waiting hanging in the air. Out of fear, Sakura felt her breath hitch.

Big mistake.

"I know you're awake."

Sakura held her gasp, trying to play it off and hope that they would think they're hallucinating. But this person was good, and was growing impatient. So, attempting to appease them, Sakura sighed, opening her emerald eyes to come face to face with the source of warmth in the room.

This person, dressed in dark pajamas, was gazing at her with intense blue eyes. But the fireplace was giving a dim glow, and she could barely tell who it was.

"How are you feeling?"

"I'm fine, Naruto."

The person froze at Sakura's answer, and then snorted. Sakura realized that the voice was quite..._feminine._

"Naruto? What the heck?"

Now knowing this was a female, _she_ came around the couch, Sakura watching her warily and trying to figure out who it was at the same time. She passed the arm rest Sakura was leaning on, and the pinkette smelled warm honey and vanilla off of her...

She sat down at the lone teal love-seat diagonal from Sakura, and the girl recognized her.

The perfect princess posture could be seen through the dark blue pajamas identical to her own white ones, along with the perfect model curves.

The lightly tanned complexion stretched across, creating a canvas for the ideal set of features - high cheekbones, plump dark pink lips, royalty-like nose, and the slightly almond shaped eyes. Dark lashes brushed against the apples of her cheeks, and once one blink was complete, the shiny, sapphire blue eyes shone.

Her platinum blonde hair was all down this time, the strong bang falling on its usual side, and the other part tucked behind her ear. The strands of honey silk fell in slight waves compared to the usual straightness, resembling cascading locks of soft goldenrod thread. This was the natural her.

Her...

Ino Yamanaka.

"I'm not Naruto," she went on, slowly grasping Sakura's wandering attention. "And I know you're surprised."

"..." She couldn't even find it in her to reply properly. She only continued staring down at her hands, avoiding eye contact.

"You don't have to say anything," Ino continued almost immediately, voice growing quieter as she spoke. She was testing the waters, closely watching her reaction. But despite Sakura's usual openness, nothing was giving her away. It was as if a mask was built to shield herself. "There's nothing _to_ say."

And then she spoke. The sound was light and harmonious, easy on the ears. If it weren't for the large silence, Ino would have missed it:

"...Yes, there is."

Ino's bluebell stare picked up from staring at her as a whole and, instead, burned into Sakura's profile, attempting to read her. But she wouldn't even lock eyes with her. Yet, she continued.

"Thank you."

Like an involuntary reaction, Ino's lips cracked into a smirk - an ugly, twisted smirk that held a hint of sadness. It was guilty and bitter, and came out of nowhere.

From Sakura's perch, she caught the expression and shook frozen in shock.

"For what?" Ino questioned, voice bittersweet and clear. "For ditching you in third grade because I wanted to be popular? For leaving in fifth grade and barging back into your life in seventh? For stealing your best friend, your first crush? For taking away your happiness? For bullying you? For _everything_?"

Sakura flinched, feeling unwanted memories resurfacing painfully like a blow to the heart. But she couldn't, for the life of her, even shed a tear. Ino seemed to be taking care of that for her.

The blonde beauty was shaking, her perfect posture slumped over slightly. Her hands that had been set to rest near her knees were sort of curled into a partial fist, moving in small twitches. Hair fell into the light, and Sakura realized it wasn't glowing healthily. Every part of her screamed desperation. And the crystalline tears dripping down her face completed the heartbreaking image.

Sakura felt her defenses weaken a bit.

"...Ino..."

"No, Sakura," she sharply interrupted. Her blue eyes looked up simultaneously, and the healthy baby blue resembled a pale, glassy blue-grey. "Just let me wallow in my goddamn misery." The broken smile returned. "It's the least I can do for all of the shit I've done." Her gaze fell back down.

Sakura's walls, cracked and crumbled from so much wear and tear, shattered even more. They were built four years ago to block away prying, dangerous people, but she could feel them tumbling down. At the sight of her best friend - _ex-_best friend - practically on the ground in front of her.

Some sort of match was lit and thrown into the gas once the realization hit.

Ino felt her breath catch when small, pale hands gripped her shoulders and yanked her to look back up. Her drooping, tired baby-blues locked with intense, burning green. And then one pale hand went up, and clashed against her skin. Ino's heart stopped.

It echoed.

The force of the slap had turned her head to the right, her tears still falling. Surprise was written like a novel across her face, pain not even registered even though the dull sting was still there. Coherent thoughts disappeared.

"Stop blaming yourself," Sakura began in that hauntingly sweet voice of hers - the same that plagued Ino's nightmares for many years since then. "I should be blamed."

The blonde shook, feeling it on the tip of her tongue. She found her voice moments later. "...What for?" Ino questioned.

One sad, true, yet beautiful smile dusted across Sakura's face. Ino knew the answer wouldn't have been a anticipated one. And hell, was she right.

"For _me_ letting_ you_ go."

* * *

Karin's wine-red lips pulled into a large smile, vicious and cruel.

Almost like a ritual dance, she waved around the golden thing in her hand, 'Sakura Haruno' engraved across the front in perfect calligraphy. She clicked her tongue as she walked, matching the rhythm of her tall, dark red pumps. The bloody-red dress she wore was pulled tight to her body, falling in swishing, teasing waves around her creamy legs.

One glance at her vanity mirror to catch her reflection, she moved with the air of a blue-blood. Exiting her bedroom, she shut the door behind her and merrily made her way down the hall where one of her best friends awaited.

There was a giddy skip in her step today.

Almost immediately, she brought up a topic.

"Good job, Ami," Karin praised as she approached the girl dressed in violet. Karin hooked arms with her and kissed the invitation in her hands, the devil-red lipstick smearing the perfect mark next to Sakura's name. "I couldn't have done it better myself."

"Thank you, Karin-sama," Ami replied, gladly returning the smirk her superior was sending her. "The new recruits were willing, so why not make their first mission an easy one?"

"Of course it'd be easy."

The two reached the staircase just beyond Karin's room, and began descending. At the bottom of the stairs were the other two a part of their close-knit circle of four.

"She's just some wannabe wench."

Ami snickered.

"Are we talking about Haruno?" Kin questioned, smoothing down her tight, black dress and hooking arms with Ami. Tayuya migrated to Karin's free side and did the same.

"Who else?" Ami replied, tone slightly haughty.

"That bitch got what was fucking coming at her," Tayuya inputted, smirk widening in that tomboyish yet complimenting way of hers. Her silver dress wrung around her in light waves, moving with the curvatures of her body. "She deserved it."

"Yes, she did," Karin agreed. "And in the end, we still win."

The golden invitation was waved and Karin walked with the other three near the front doors of her mansion. Tonight, there was a party at Dosu's - sophisticated yet utterly sexy. Only Oto-born were invited - people from his old circle of friends. Though Ami was Konoha-born, she tagged along being one of Karin's right-hand girls.

And tonight, Karin would celebrate her win.

"Come girls. We will dance the night away, and laugh at Haruno's misery tomorrow."

"Best week ever," Kin mused aloud. She received many agreements.

The door swung open carefully, and the four girls dressed to impress waltzed out. It swung to a close behind them, and the group moved down the steps, heels clicking in sync. The limo was parked outside the gates, and though they had to cross the giant lot and pass the fountain, it was worth it to have some alone time to revel in the victory.

Karin, one hundred. Sakura, negative four billion.

They laughed and giggled, dissing Sakura and Hinata and just about every other person along the way.

Nothing could fuck with their perfect night.

But they really shouldn't be speaking so soon. Something - maybe someone - stopped them dead in their tracks.

The lot went quiet as each of them realized a sudden change in the atmosphere. Someone...someone was here, with the.

Like lightening, something happened, too quickly to comprehend.

An unseen person had appeared out of thin air, and Kin barely had any time to react before a round house kick met her square in the face. she flew backwards and landed on her back with a sickening crack, face contorted into pain before blacking out.

Ami screeched, yanking her hand away to avoid getting pulled down with the unconscious girl.

Similar to a chain reaction, the other end was picked off, as well. Tayuya, having been distracted, was punched in the stomach and knocked back, letting go of Karin.

The darker red-head gasped, spitting out blood, before cursing at the invisible assaulter. Regaining her balance, she awaited another move.

It came, fast and deadly. A punch was thrown that moment and Tayuya caught it, pulling the black-clothed arm closer to her. She smirked, large and arrogant, tossing her own punch straight towards the face.

Or where a face would be if it existed.

She seemed to hit nothing before the figure bashed heads with her, rendering her unconscious as well. Ami caught the whole thing and was about to turn and run when a fist connected with the front of her face, breaking her nose and also leaving her out cold.

Karin let go of her when she fell, stepping away.

Ami's, Tayuya's, and Kin's limp bodies were tossed aside, by feet or hands, she couldn't even tell. They were moved out of the way, close to each other.

Karin clenched her teeth, stepping back again upon feeling something move. She sensed the darkly-clad figures make a circle around her, closing in on her. But her straight posture never wavered, and to anyone else, she would have even seemed a bit indifferent to her surroundings.

Gravel crunched beneath some footsteps, and Karin heard him before she saw him.

"I didn't think you'd stoop so low."

Karin blinked, feeling a few of the dark figures retract, opening a gap in the circle. Someone stepped in, and Karin recognized him instantly.

Her sharp tongue replied on its on. Normally, she wouldn't be caught dead talking to him this way, but no one was hereto judge. "What are you doing here?" she fired back like a flaming dagger, hoping to stun him.

Yet nothing was able to touch him, eh? He only snorted in response to her attempt at being brave against him, rolling his eyes.

He told her his motives, cutting to the chase. Well, he was never one to beat around the bush.

"I'm here to take back what isn't yours."

Karin was momentarily lost, before realizing what he meant. She smirked, large and cruel, and lifted her arm up. She waved the item in her hand slowly and teasingly. "What, this old thing?" she mockingly questioned. "It shouldn't even be touched by people dirtier than the ground we walk on."

He snorted at her hypocrisy. "Why is it you touch it, then?"

Again, it took several moments before she understood. She turned slightly red, fuming internally at the insult. "I was given an invitation by one of _your_ friends!"

"Kiba is an idiot," he commented.

"He still had the power to grant me an invite!"

He sighed, annoyed. One hand brushed through his soft-looking hair absentmindedly. Nonchalantly, he replied, "We're not gods, Karin."

Who was the hypocrite now? The red-head shot back an instant reply:"Oh, but don't you act like we are?"

Karin's sultry smirk widened and she took pride when he remained silent.

"Face it. You like to build us up and tower over the ones lower than us." Karin rubbed in her one-up on him, but he quickly pushed her back down with a much hated fact:

"Sakura is higher ranked than you."

Karin frowned almost immediately. She forgot about that tidbit of information.

Sakura Haruno, daughter of the famed Haruno Clan, sat above the Hyuuga Clan and tied with the Uchiha Clan at number one in the whole of Japan, and maybe even the world. Karin was a minor, sitting under Ino Yamanaka who was probably at eighth or ninth place.

Damn.

"She doesn't act like it at all!" Karin screeched. irritation arising. She glared, cherry-red eyes narrowed with glowing hatred. She despised that girl who had nothing and everything at the same time.

It was so fucking unfair!

He smirked. She took the bait. "You're so easy to aggravate. It's why people don't take you seriously."

"And what do you know, Mr. Hot-Shot?!" Karin fired bright red daggers, resisting the urge to jab her thumb against his chest. "You're dating Ino Yamanaka, for Christ's sake! No one takes _you_ seriously."

"Might I remind you that Ino has a higher status than you," he replied smoothly, unaffected. "And she's easier to tolerate. At least she can engage in intellectual conversations sometimes."

And once more, it took a while for Karin to understand what he meant, but when she caught on, she stomped a foot into the ground angrily. Her glare intensified as searingly fiery as the sun. "Are you calling me stupid?!"

He snorted again. "You look like an angry baboon, Karin."

"UGH!"

She decided it was enough. She let out an inhuman, ear-splitting battle-cry and attempted to lunge at him. But before she could, she was hit with something hard. Karin landed with a dull, heavy thud, the envelope being saved from the mud on the ground by him.

His fingers ran along her wrist before taking the invitation, and she groaned, the ache in the back of her head growing at a quick pace.

"You stupid girl," he began as he scanned the golden parchment for any damage. He began smearing the lipstick she placed on it off with a dark handkerchief. "You thought you could win against me?"

"...Damn...you..."

"Have been for a long time, sweetheart." His smile was sadistic and dark, but for some odd reason, Karin still found it the most beautiful thing in the world. He tossed the handkerchief at Karin, letting fall on her outstretched arm.

The wine-red lip-stick appeared black against the shade of midnight the little cloth took on.

A question sat on the tip of her tongue until it was pushed off of her lips. It fell in broken words, but she had to know. She didn't care, _she had to know_.

"What makes her...better...than me...?"

His reaction was almost immediate.

The smile on his face widened, but a touch of something appeared in his eyes - warm and true. Was that..._love_? Jealousy and some anger churned within her.

"She's real, Karin. She's real, and intellectual, and talented. She's not just gorgeous. Everything about her is unique." He looked down at her, but seemed to be looking past her. He was...imagining her.

Loving her. Smiling together. In each other's arms. Karin's heart broke.

"She's everything we're not."

And everything went black.

* * *

"Are you sure you'll be okay?" Ino questioned as she walked alongside Sakura out of the front door. Sakura only nodded.

"I didn't even want to go."

"Then how come...?"

"I was going to go for Hinata-chan's sake..." She flushed slightly, tucking loose pink hair behind her ears.

Ino held her lips, refraining from making a biting comment about the Hyuuga girl. That girl grew alongside _her_ best friend and became someone to depend on. The blonde was slightly envious of that.

Though it was still partially her fault.

She forced away from the thoughts. "So you are going?" she inquired.

"I don't know," Sakura admitted. "Now that I don't have the invitation, I can't go."

"I could get you another one," Ino offered, sincerity evident in her expression. But Sakura shook her head furiously, denying such an action.

"No, I can't possibly burden you with that!" Sakura insisted. Ino frowned.

If she remembered Sakura correctly - and she definitely does - Sakura was a force to be reckoned with despite her timidness. If she set her mind on something, it was hard to get her to agree otherwise. A snowball has a better chance in Hell.

"Fine, fine," she replied to save herself the pointless effort. "But I still have to go. Are you free Saturday?" She grinned, bright and real, and Sakura felt a familiar feeling of nostalgia pique her heart.

This was it.

"Yup." She smiled back softly.

"Cool. Will you come shopping with me to pick up a dress for the party? We can shop for other stuff, too," Ino suggested.

"Sure, sure," Sakura said, laughing lightly. "I have to go get a new notebook for math anyways-"

"No."

Sakura raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"No. No, no, no, no, no. You are _not_ shopping for school crap!" Ino groaned at the thought of wasting a perfectly good opportunity to shop 'till you drop on..._school supplies._ Shivers.

"Okay, okay." Sakura laughed at her reaction. "What time?"

Ino grinned toothily. "I'll text you. Has your number changed since..." she awkwardly trailed off. But Sakura didn't seem to notice.

"It's still the same. Do you want me to give you the pajamas back? I can leave it in your locker-"

"Actually," Ino began, half smirking and half smiling. "Give it to me in second period."

"Um...okay...? Do you want me to give it to you before class starts? We can meet up in the bathroom or something-"

"No, did you not hear me, dear Sakura-chan?" Ino wagged a finger in her face. "I want you to give it to me during free-time - the last ten minutes of class, okay?"

Sakura paused, unsure.

"_Okay?_"

"...Okay..."

"Good!" Ino chirruped. Interrupting the moment, though, a car horn honked, and Ino looked over Sakura's head at the source. It wasn't a hard feat, considering Sakura was shorter by five inches or so. "Ah, the car's here. Ready to go?"

Sakura nodded, turning around. "Yeah-" Her eyes bulged at the sight of the 'car'. It was a freaking stretch limo! "I'm riding home in _that_?"

Ino laughed. "Oh come on! You ride in one everyday!"

"Bu-but-!" Sakura weakly fought back. "...Fine..."

Ino grinned and grabbed her wrist, trotting down the steps to meet the chauffeur. He bowed to both girls.

"Good evening Miss Yamanaka, Miss Haruno." He politely smiled, small and careful but there.

"Hello, Kazuki," Ino acknowledged. She turned to Sakura. "This is Kazuki. He'll take you home, okay?"

Sakura nodded, grateful. "Thank you, Ino-chan."

Ino smiled at the honorific. It had just been too long since she'd heard such a close thing. "Anytime, Sakura-chan. Be careful, and see you tomorrow, sweetums!"

She hugged Sakura, winked, and blew a kiss before nodding to Kazuki. Said boy opened the door, Sakura sliding in. He shut it once she was gathered inside.

"Is she a close friend?" Kazuki questioned from underneath his fancy hat. "Or another poser?"

"She's real," Ino replied, smiling with both her lips and her eyes. Kazuki hadn't seen her so truly happy in a long time. "She's an old friend and we've reconnected."

"So we can trust her?"

"...Always."

Kazuki smiled. "It's good you've find someone to be close to."

"It's not that I've found her," Ino replied, matter-of-factly. "It's that I've found her after losing her - a mistake I'm never making again."

Kazuki chuckled. "Have a good night, Miss Yamanaka."

Ino winked at him, and he disappeared around the limo into the driver's seat. He spoke, something Ino couldn't hear but it was directed to Sakura. And then the engine was started.

It drove off around the fountain, exiting the gates.

This was like a dream. It felt so unreal to Ino - how something she only ever dreamed of doing had finally come true. They reconnected somehow, and were slowly rebuilding their broken relationship. It was a beautiful thing.

This could _work_.

Maybe after a while, spending time with each other and whatnot, they could go back to being what they once were - sister-figures.

Just maybe.

Ino realized she had been standing outside for a while, and a cool breeze caressed her skin. It brought her out of her thoughts and she shook her head and turned on her heel to go back inside.

She closed the door for herself, waving away the staff trying to do the work for her. Her thoughts were occupied the whole time as she ascended the steps and walked into her room, wanting nothing more than to sink into bed and think of what to do tomorrow.

How to react when Sakura would give the pajamas back. What to say when she was questioned. How to protect Sakura from the dangers of high-school - Karin in particular.

She couldn't afford to break the delicate stage of their flourishing friendship.

Ino sighed heavily, oblivious to most of her surroundings and sitting on her bed upon being close enough. It was quiet as she thought, the only sound being the soft rustle of leaves outside, only heard because of her balcony doors being open.

A scent, refreshing, powerful, and delicious to a female touched her nose, and her closing eyes shot open.

"Ino."

A shift in the cool breeze in the room alerted her moments too late, and once the voice carried over to her, the breeze was no longer calm and cooling. Instead, it was cold and chilling.

The blonde paused, then slowly turned her head around. She stared across the room into the eyes of a man.

"What are you doing here?" she questioned, tone low and bordering indifference. She couldn't have him here, distracting her. It would complicate what Ino finally managed to knit together and appease today.

"I came with this."

He stepped into the room, leaving his perch on the balcony. His shoe-clad feet thunked in quiet steps across her carpet. One hand was lifted, and Ino could see what he was holding in a slightly protective grasp.

A golden invitation dangled from his fingertips.

Ino raised an eyebrow in question, slightly confused. "An invitation? I have one."

"It's not for you," he replied a bit quickly, and snorted once. He brought it up higher, flipping it over. His other hand came up to graze against the engraved name on the back: 'Sakura Haruno'.

"Sakura's?" Ino inquired, staring at the written name with slight shock written on her face. "Why do you have that?"

"Karin and her clique sent out some of their followers and ambushed Sakura," he replied. Ino noticed his gaze hardened slightly when he reported that, and she was sure she was feeling what he was feeling.

Anger.

"So you went and got it back?"

He smirked, lazily and drawled. "I took her group out, knocked her unconscious, and then got it back," he elaborated. Ino rolled her eyes at his slight arrogance.

"Details, details." She shook her head in mock disappointment. "Are you going to give Sakura that?"

"No."

Ino's lips slipped into a frown at his immediate, sure answer. "What?"

"No, I'm not going to give it to her."

"Why the hell not?"

His gaze fell on her, beautiful and intense - the same gaze she fell for all those years ago. But the feelings were wearing off, as much as it was weird to admit. It was true. "I'll give it to her at the party."

"How do you know security will even let her in?"

He snorted again. "Ino, I'm pretty sure I can get her in."

Ino raised an eyebrow, sensing something else. "But that's not what you're going to do, huh?"

He chuckled. "Nope."

"And what's your brilliant plan?"

He winked. "That's for me to know, and for you to hear about."

Ino huffed, shaking her head. "God, you're so irritating."

He chuckled again, hearty and whole.

But then the room leveled into some sort of seriousness, and the change was so large, Ino noticed it immediately. She looked to him and all traces of joking disappeared in his eyes, replaced by a stone hardness.

Now, it was time to get down to business.

"Ino, we need to talk," he began slowly, "about our relationship."

A sad smile crossed her lips, sweet and haunting. She already knew. So the inevitable has come this quick, hm? "I know, I know."

"You do?" He raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah," she replied, laughing just a bit. Her blue eyes glittered knowingly in the low-light. "Chase after her. Make her happy, okay?"

And finally, after knowing each other for so long, a real smile, true and breathtaking, graced his lips. It made him look younger, made him look so much more amazing. Ino's heart ached slightly, knowing it wasn't a smile for her.

But for some reason, she couldn't find it in her to be jealous of Sakura. Maybe because they reconnected so well? Maybe because what he felt for her was what she also felt for her, but hers was on a more sister-level?

She didn't know.

"Treat her right," Ino began again. Smiling wasn't as hard as she thought it was right now. "She deserves real love after what she's gone through." Her eyes smiled with her lips. "And you do, too."

"Ino..."

"We can still be friends," Ino continued, smile widening. "It's all we really have ever been."

He sighed, stuffing one hand into his pocket. "I know, I was a sucky boyfriend."

Ino grinned, approaching him. She kissed his cheek lightly, almost more as a friend than a girlfriend. "Make up for it by making Sakura happy, okay?"

He smiled, another real one filled with every emotion he felt for the lucky girl. Ino couldn't have been more proud.

"Thank you, Ino."

And for just one last time, he leaned his head down and sealed their break-up with their final kiss.

* * *

******•** Ah, another chapter down. I'm proud of this chapter, no matter what others say. **•**

******•** This might seem like a filler chapter with a vague take on Karin taking the invitation, but I think there was some plot movement in this. Because of that, I'm totally happy with this :D **•**  


**********•** I'm pretty sure you guys can guess the mystery man here, even though his name wasn't mentioned. I just made it too easy -_- **•**  


******•** Oh, I have an _ANNOUNCEMENT!_ Next week, the Thanksgiving special begins :)) So look forward to that! **•**  


******•** Final chapter comes out on Halloween. See you all 'till then! **•**  


**-burrblefish  
**


	6. Chapter Six

**• Part One of the 'Holiday Series' •**

**• Rated T •**

* * *

**• STAMP •**

* * *

**• Chapter Six - Finale •**

* * *

**-WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 31ST, 2012-**

Ino squealed in utter delight. "Sakura-chaaaaaaaan!"

The blonde pounced on the pinkette once said girl walked into Kakashi's second period room. Her sun-kissed strands of golden silk swished behind her, held by its usual ponytail. With her curvacious body - clad in a stylish violet tank top, dark-washed jeans, tall plum pumps, and matching purple jewelry - it was no wonder boys fell head over heels for her and girls worshiped her, too enamored to be envious.

But the reason the room quieted down was _why_ she was so hyper.

Sakura, Konoha nerd turned slight daredevil at her plight in Art Class, but assumed poser, had walked through the room. The usual nobody that everybody knew - if that made sense. She was picked on, bullied, teased, especially by Ino's 'species'.

Six weeks ago, she had been nothing. Just another human soul bonded to the Hell called high school. Sent through trial after trial just to test her and see whether or not she'd survive.

Five weeks ago, she got Karin suspended. It was then that others started to get confused; Naruto Uzumaki, resident jock and one of many school hotties, had begun to appear around her. He pestered and annoyed her, but not in the usual way. It was more intimate than that, like friendship.

Four weeks ago, and suddenly, Shikamaru Nara started to converse with her on an intelligent level. He was the third person present during Sakura and Hinata's little camp-outs upstairs during lunch where they always ate. Sometimes he wouldn't speak, but most of the time, he talked about anything and everything with them. He definitely wasn't afraid to be seen with them in public.

Three weeks ago, and the Art Class incident occurred. Since then, Neji had been less hostile towards Hinata - though it was still there. He moved seats in Art, closer to the duo. And Sai? Still hung around a shadow, that he did. He didn't personally approach them, but a few times he'd sketch the pink-haired of the two in his personal sketch-book. Don't ask how anyone knows.

Last week, the class was an audience to a particularly life-changing scene. Sakura had given Ino the borrowed pajamas back, complete with a full 'thank you' and respectful bow. Ino took it up a notch and gave Sakura a hug, then offered to sit in the two seats behind them, dragging Tenten along. The four openly conversed - er, well Ino and Tenten did. Sakura and Hinata sort of sat their uncomfortably.

That Saturday, they went shopping for Halloween costumes. The four - wait, five. Temari, Gaara's older sister, tagged along.

So today, the day of the party, and everything the whole school thought impossible actually _happened_.

Sakura had awkwardly side-stepped Ino's leap for joy, attempting to hug her. She dodged another futile attempt and walked to her desk.

Hinata gripped her wrist once the other girl slid into her seat. The two had been put a row back; the front row was empty because Kakashi had been using them to keep some stuff he needed to reorganize into his cabinets there. She patted her shoulder with a small smile. "Overwhelming?" she softly inquired.

"Yeah," was her response. Sakura pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose. "Extremely overwhelming."

"I can tell." Hinata giggled when Sakura sighed jokingly.

"Oh, whatcha laughing at?"

Ino smiled that sly smile of hers as she slipped into the seat directly behind Sakura, Tenten next to her. The brunette was busy listening to music, blocking out the world completely. To Ino - her breath fanned across the pinkette's neck and she nearly leapt out of her seat. Ino chuckled at her antics.

"Wanna tell me what's so funny?"

Sakura only sank in her seat, embarrassed.

Hinata watched all of this, a slight ire in the depths of her usually warm heart. Ino was trying to take her best friend away right in front of her, for God's sake! Something had to be done.

"I wouldn't bother her right now," Hinata quietly commented, earning two stares. She hunched over a little bit at the sudden combined weight of their attentions. "I-It's just that Sakura-chan thinks she can't go to the party... And I know she'd never try to let me down..."

Inwardly, Hinata was smirking at the fuming Ino. The blonde obviously knew that Hinata was rubbing in her and Sakura's utter closeness, and as per usual, Sakura was oblivious.

She only smiled her small, radiant smile, tilting her head slightly to the side. An apologetic expression touched her emerald eyes as she bobbed her head once. "I'm really sorry. I just can't believe I'd lose my invitation like that."

Hinata waved it off. "It's okay, it wasn't your fault."

Ino glanced at Hinata. Maybe...just once, it wouldn't hurt. To form a temporary truce...would it?

"I need to talk to you later, Hina-chan," she cheerfully said. But Hinata caught the slight order. She simply nodded in return.

Sakura opened her mouth, prepared to speak, when a noise caught her attention. Hinata and Ino also tensed slightly. The double desks to Sakura's left moved a smidgen, the chairs scraping against the floor. Two people slid into the seats with a light plop, and Ino spun around, Evil Eye at the ready.

Her glare melted into utter shock.

"Shikamaru? Gaara?"

Shkamaru regarded her with dark eyes, lazily setting his head onto his desk. To his left sat Gaara, cool jades glancing at her once, before turning to Sakura. He nodded towards her, earning a small smile. Shikamaru snorted when he averted his gaze, a miniscule blush on his cheeks.

"Good morning, Sakura," he greeted, some enthusiasm embedded into his voice. It was Gaara's turn to throw a dirty stare, which he dutifully ignored.

"Good morning." Complete with a bright grin, and both Gaara and Shikamaru were too distracted to get angry at each other.

"Morning, Sakura!"

Kiba Inuzuka, followed by Neji, both sat in the double desks to Sakura's right. The canine-lover grinned wolfishly, a brightness covering his deep chocolate eyes and making them appear stronger, deeper.

"Morning," Sakura replied, tentative smile in place. She didn't know Kiba very well, not on a personal level at least. He had just sort of barged into her life, coming in with Naruto. Luckily, this time, Neji saved her from any further awkward conversing.

"Leave her be," he began, chiding Kiba. His cold eyes turned to her, and it was like watching ice melt into warm pools of crystal clear water. Sakura felt better; less put-on-the-spot. "Good morning, Sakura-san."

"Just 'Sakura'," she began, smile close to grinning. She lifted one pale hand and waved lightly. "Good morning, Neji-san."

"Fine. Just 'Neji', then," he replied, slight smirk appearing on his handsome face. Sakura giggled and he dragged the beginning-to-complain Kiba down into their seats, Neji closest to her.

"Sure-"

"GOOOOOD MOOOORNING, SAKUUUUURA-CHAAAAAAAN!"

Each attention fell solely onto the source.

...Oh dear God...

Naruto bounced over in all of his hyperactive glory. His grin was wide and illuminating, pearly whites nearly blinding to the naked eye. He pushed the chair straight in front of Hinata and sat down facing them, dreamy blue eyes falling on Sakura.

Hinata nearly fainted at the proximity.

But Sakura's usual timidness vanished in a heartbeat at the sight of him. A tick mark appeared on her forehead, and a heat that rivaled the sun ignited in one glare directed on Naruto. He, the ignorant moron he was, only continued smiling at her in that sort of love-sick, admiring, but totally (yeah, right!) platonic way.

"Naruto, what are you doing here?" she inquired, voice dropping two octaves in rising irritation.

"What do you mean, Sakura-chan? I sit here now!"

"Hm?" Hinata hummed in question unconsciously. Receiving his attention, and she regretted it, slumping in her seat. Though, once his gaze lifted off of her, she sighed in relief.

But she also missed the weight of his stare.

"Kakashi-sensei moved Teme and I here!"

Sakura's blood ran cold.

'Teme'?

There was only one person who went by that name.

It was the one boy who she had fallen in love with all those years ago in the seventh grade. He was truly a sight to behold, and was the star of the school. They were young and hormones were a new thing - obviously, once she saw him, she fell.

Those were her loud, hyperactive days. The days when her energy levels spiked dramatically and always, erm, cheered Naruto up. It just seemed like Naruto had soaked the life out of her when he...left.

Sakura furiously shook her head. Now was not the time to think of such depressing thoughts. Think 'happy'. Ino and Naruto were both with her now...though still very shaky was their friendships. Hinata rarely got along with Ino and always went red and nearly faints around Naruto.

...Dammit, this wouldn't work.

"Oi, TEME! OVER HEEEEERE!"

"Naruto, I'm standing two feet away from you."

The pinkette realized the only available seat was next to Naruto, and in front of her. In front of her. _In front of her_.

Sakura paled.

Oh shit.

* * *

School ended hours ago. Almost everyone invited was getting ready to go to the party of the year.

Karin waltzed around in her closet, smirking. Her bloody red lips pouted together in the perfect plump of perfection, passing her vanity mirror as she twirled. She had been searching for her black boots, but seemed to have misplaced th-

Ah, there it was.

She reached over and plucked the boots from their stand.

Karin retreated back into the main room and sat down at the foot of her bed, perfectly angled to sit right in front of the full-body length mirror. Her long, creamy, shapely legs folded at the knee, and she slipped on the high-heeled, sleek black leather boots. She zipped it all the way up near mid-thigh. The fishnets went from the top and disappeared upward into a short-short, purple leather skirt. It wrapped tightly around her slim waist and wide hips. It continued tightly and went upwards, forming a corset stomach and heart-shaped top. Her gloves went all the way from her fingertips to her upper arm.

Her vibrant red hair was curled so that her odd cut was barely noticeable. It fell in tight ringlets over her right shoulder. A small hair-clip with a mini witch's hat was pinned to the top of her head. Plus a small broomstick chained to her waist completed the look.

She was one hell of a witch.

A phone rang, the high-pitched noise of some singer alarming through the room. It struck her quite annoying - time to change her ringtone. Karin walked over to the head of her bed and snatched her cellphone that laid next to the pillows. Flipping it open, she answered it with a smooth, sultry: "Hello?"

"_Karin_."

She smirked a sexy smirk, leaning her hip against the nightstand. "Hey, Itachi-kun," she purred, flirtatiously.

"_I have news for you_." She frowned slightly at his straight-forwardness. He was like a stone wall - can't be toppled, can't be moved.

"And what is that?"

"_You're not coming to the party_."

Karin's smirk faltered. Her mind registered the information slowly, therefore leaving Itachi to listen to nothing on the other line.

"What?"

"_You heard me_." One could practically hear the smirk on his face. "_Sasuke's throwing your invite away_."

"I have my invite! Stamped and approved!" Karin screeched, anger flushing her face as red as her hair. She stomped through her room and grabbed the golden invitation on her vanity table, flipping it open. There laid out five approval stamps, olden and dried.

"_The guard manning the gates won't let you in. You have to give him your name_."

"DAMN YOU!"

And it was about then that Itachi had hung up on her, too irritated to uphold a conversation.

* * *

Ino's blue eyes sparkled at the mansion before them.

The abode had at least three floors - damn, maybe four. The roof was a smooth mahogany color, the walls a pale beige-white. The doors were tall and large, plants of every shape and size everywhere, signifying life. A pool peeked around the corner into the backyard.

From where they were, lights flashed and glanced off of the walls outside and inside the house. Music blared loudly, and the site seemed more like a club than a house-party.

Ino drove forward and braked. The line of cars waiting to get approvals to enter the property was long, but they were fifth in line. They had to show their golden invites, then hand over their names. Once through, they parked and got to party inside.

"Wait, Sak, your eye make-up's a little smeared."

Ino picked up Sakura's ducked head by the chin and faced her over. The pinkette was an absolutely beauty. Ino smudged the excess off and followed through with light flits.

"There..."

"Thanks," Sakura replied quietly.

Her heart was thudding in her chest at the moment. She didn't have her invitation. Not at all. She'd give her name first. That was actually all of their plans. If the invites came after, then she'd get kicked out - so be it. Ino had convinced her to go anyways, so she did. She couldn't put the amazing costume Ino bought for her to waste.

She was dressed as a vampiress, and though the dark colors would normally look odd on an innocent soul, it accentuated her inner beauty instead. Her long, cherry pink hair was spray-dyed black and red in the under-layers, barely noticeable but present. It was leftover from Ino's ventures on Crazy Hair Day during one of their school's spirit weeks.

Her eyes were outlined in pure black charcoal eyeliner, lashes brought out with volumizing mascara, and skin untouched because it was so pale. Her green eyes had contacts in - specialty made by her parents after Ino had...requested...them, and explained the situation. Her parents couldn't be any more happier seeing Sakura mingle with people her age. Anyways, her eyes were still the pure emerald green, but in the right light, they appeared with flecks of gold and red. A perfect unison.

Sakura's costume was hidden by a long, dark red cloak, and Ino had allowed it - just barely.

The blonde in the driver's seat, skidding to a stop as third in the long line, was dressed as a candy-corn witch. The complete costume with the alternating white, orange and yellow colors, with her signature purple thrown her and there. Her make-up consisted of the same scheme, and her hair was left all down. She did the underlying spray-dye like Sakura's, using pumpkin and plum.

Hinata in the back center was clad in a long, crystal blue dress, glitter sparkling like a thousand stars all over her dress. It was floor-length, long-sleeved, and off both shoulders, fashioned a bit like Aurora from Sleeping Beauty. A matching tiara sat at the top of her head, twisting with diamonds and aquamarines and sapphires. Her eyes popped with blue make-up, complimenting her pale eyes immensely. Her hair was left down and untouched, save for a long strand of gradient - her usual dark hair morphing into blue at the middle, then turning frosty-colored at the bottom.

Tenten sat to the right of her, dressed in a cherry-pink Chinese-styled dress - complete with the quipao top, long slits up the sides, and sleeveless-ness. But she had a few kunoichi weapons littered here and there on her person. Her make-up was light and natural, but there all the same. Her hair was up in the usual buns, but cherry-blossom petals designed into branch-like clips kept them up.

And Temari, the one and only, was dressed as a gladiator. A goddess-like lioness with the Greek-fashioned, short dress and halter top, sandals, and much gold accessories. Her make-up went all over, making her appear covered in dust, dirt, blood, and grime. Her hair was all down, slightly mussed to complete the look.

Ino pulled up by the guard.

The man was tall, blue-eyed and brown haired. He was probably in his mid-twenties, and was clad in a business suit. He appeared chiseled beneath the strict clothing, but his eyes told everyone he wasn't there to party - he was the muscle. And he was prepared to take down anyone out of line; should it happen, he had a gun at the ready on his waist.

"Invitations."

Sakura immediately tensed.

The girls around pulled out their envelopes, trying not to appear hesitate or suspicious, while she ducked her head down. The gold invites glittered like untainted gold, and Ino gathered them and handed them over to the man with great hesitance.

"Names?"

"Ino Yamanaka."

He flipped open the first envelope, confirming the stamps. He checked her off on his clipboard.

"Tenten."

He repeated the process.

"Hinata Hyuuga."

Once more.

"Temari Sabaku."

And a final time.

He raised an eyebrow, and glanced from his clipboard to the invitations. He finally looked into the car, and Sakura resisted the urge to sweat.

"You. Where's your invitation?"

Crystals directed towards Sakura. His tone wasn't harsh or angry. Not even at all irritated at having his 'precious' time wasted. But his voice wasn't happy or understanding either.

"I-I don't have it..." Sakura answered meekly.

"Then I can't let you in. Either you and your friends leave the property, or you get out of the car and go."

The reactions were immediate.

Ino glared, famous sharp tongue lashing like a dagger. Her word choice slowly aggravated the man, and he broke his cool facade. The two argued vehemently, neither letting the other get the upper hand.

Sakura was too mentally - and emotionally - tired to even be worried about how much trouble they'd be getting in. She only leaned against the car window, giggling inwardly upon hearing Temari mutter a "What the hell, Ino..." under her breath. Sakura glanced out amongst the other costume-d teens entering the mansion.

She despised much of the people of the populars. But lately, it seemed to be changing; her perspective of them, at least.

And besides, the whole party seemed like a lot of fun. Being the hard-working, outcasted child of loving parents, they worried over her social well-being. Upon news of the party, they immediately offered to buy her anything she needed to go.

Some people distracted her from those thoughts. A lot of them were cute, nice, and few were in the least bit skanky. A bumblebee, ladybug, wolfman, Batman and Robin, and all other kinds of costumes walked through the front door. She felt like she was nothing compared to them...

But...but there was one person going the wrong way.

It was a tall, muscular figure, most likely clad in a cloak by the way a cloth billowed around him. He walked with grace and power and authority, striding across the whole of the area from the doors to the gates quickly. And before Sakura knew it, he was at her window.

She nearly leapt back at the surprise waiting outside.

Deadly, icy onyx eyes stared at her intensely from behind the glass, so strong that she was afraid Ino would have to replace the window because of the giant melted hole that would surely form.

"S-Sasuke-sama!"

Ino halted in their bickering and turned her baby-blues towards said boy.

Once eye contact was established, an unspoken conversation passed in a mere three seconds.

"Let the others in, Maruda," Sasuke began, referring to the man standing at Ino's window. He sputtered, and nodded hastily.

Huh, who knew grown men could crumble under a teenager's power?

"But you."

Sasuke's gaze switched down to Sakura, and she made the mistake of creating eye-contact as well. She flinched, but couldn't find it in her to look away. It was like he was a fisher, and she was one hungry guppy.

"Follow me."

The world was completely ignored in her eyes. It seemed as if nothing else mattered. She exited the car - against her will or not, she didn't know - and Sasuke took her arm like the gentleman he was.

She vaguely registered the fact that the girls hadn't even cried out or snatched her back. Ino pressed a button and the door Sakura had left open closed shut. Without another word to them, Ino drove passed the gates and onto the property.

"Some friends they are. They ditched you."

It took a while for her to figure out he was trying to ease the heavy tension. And awkwardly, it was sort of working.

"You were the one who took me away."

She was aware he was leading her into the backyard, nearby the poolside. He kept her arm around his, drawing her close so that they could both walk down the steps. Sasuke's steps were calm and confident, strides long. But he had slowed down just a tad so that Sakura could keep up with him.

He was the epitome of perfect composure.

While her, on the other hand, was hyperventilating.

Just what the hell was he doing?!

"That I was," he replied simply.

The poolside was vacant save for them, and he led her farthest from the backyard door. They had a magnificent view of the night sky, the moon shining like a saving grace from the Heavens. The stars glittered like rare diamonds, untouched and untainted - still pure.

"What do you want?"

Sasuke couldn't help but notice how tired that question sounded.

"Are you tired?"

She didn't know whether to answer that literally or not.

"...Yes..."

Sasuke had let go of her arm and turned to her. But she remained staring at the moon. It casted an odd but hauntingly beautiful glow in her eyes, the sheer whiteness of the moon reflecting in the most unique of ways in her already oddly colored orbs.

"Why?"

Sakura's gaze turned to him, and he flinched at the soft grief and sadness in them.

He knew it was his fault.

"I'm tired of being played. Lied to. Made fun of. Everything." It was short, simple, but more bittersweet than sweet.

Something constricted around his supposedly nonexistent heart. It was _his_ fault, after all.

"I'm sorry..." he quietly began in the kindest voice he could muster. Sakura looked at him, utterly shocked. But she went silent, so he continued. "I'm sorry for taking your friends from you. For being a part of the people turning on you and hurting you like...this..." He winced at his own words. It didn't sound like a very good apology.

"Sorry isn't going to cut it, you idiot!"

Sakura finally broke.

The hot tears spilled like a dam, and his eyes widened when she began hitting his chest with tight fists. They didn't hurt until he registered what she was doing. She screeched at him and he attempted to pull her wrists back. But he couldn't catch them.

"I hate you! _I hate you! I HATE YOU!_"

He was forced to the ground when she fell, her fists failing to continue their assault. Her tears fell upon the freshly cut grass, purifying the Earth with her crystalline tears.

"I hate you..."

A sob. A hiccup.

And all he did was hold her.

He held her most of the time, shushing her, but remaining silent. He didn't know how to comfort, especially since the one he was trying to comfort was his friends' bully target - or old bully target. So he only stayed quiet waiting for her to get her fill.

She continued with quiet sounds here and there.

They both ignored the music and screaming inside, only listening to nature. Crickets chirped, owls hooted, leaves rustled in the freshness of the night air. It was a beautiful lullaby, dark and haunting, but sweet and soothing. Sasuke felt her grow heavy in his arms, and he stopped rocking back and forth.

Was she falling asleep?

He inhaled sharply.

It was now or never.

He dipped his head forward, millimeters away from letting his lips rest on her head. He spoke softly and quietly:

"But _I_ don't hate you..."

He didn't receive a reply. He didn't expect one. So he continued.

"It's quite the opposite actually." A bittersweet laugh. "The complete opposite."

Sasuke leaned her over, careful not to wake her, and pulled out a gold envelope from somewhere in his cloak.

"I went through all of this trouble to get you to come here and be alone with me. I don't even have the balls to do this and you fall asleep. I don't know if sleep works like comas, but if you can hear me..." he trailed off.

He put the envelope on her lap, though he still couldn't see her face. It was better that way. If he saw her face, he was afraid his composure would break even more than it was right now. He pulled out a stamp and flipped it open. This one was more intricate, and glistened like real gold.

Sasuke pressed it into the final slot.

_'Dear Sakura Haruno,_

_You have been invited to Sasuke Uchiha's Halloween Party.  
_

_Be prepared in a complete costume and dress accordingly.  
_

_Please come with this invitation along with the complete five stamps below.  
_

_Your progress:  
_

[_**G.S.**_] - [_**N.U.**_] - [**_S.N._**] - [**_N.H._**] - [_**S.U.**_]

_See you soon.'_

__His lips broke into a sad, fallen smile - a picturesque of the heartbroken. It shown true and clear.

A pen produced itself from his cloak and he clicked it open. He crossed out the 'See you soon' at the bottom of the invite and wrote something else. Something that almost hurt to write.

_'I love you.'_

__"I don't know if you know that I do," he began again, fingers shakily moving away from the parchment. "It was hard and it took a while for me to come to terms with my feelings. But it's true. I...I do...And I'm sorry...for all the shit I've pulled. All I've done...If I could turn back time and take it all back..."

He couldn't even find it in himself to finish the thought. And then hesitation touched him once he reached a realization.

Maybe...just this once...he'd risk it. If she woke up and punched him, so be it. But he...he had to just feel her-

Sasuke let her head fall against his left shoulder, and he dipped down, slanting his mouth over hers. They seemed to fit like a puzzle piece, and different emotions exploded in his stomach, fueling his desire for her. It wasn't at all lust or anything. This...what he felt. He knew what it was.

Love.

He pulled back reluctantly, opening his eyes which had closed from bliss.

His eyes widened.

Sakura's emeralds were open, bright, green, and sparkling with sheer beauty. Her lips were parted a bit, and it took him several moments to realize what she had said.

"...Thank you..."

* * *

******************•** Oh my God, I know this is a day late. I was **EVERYWHERE during Halloween, and I couldn't, for the life of me, find time to finish and update this. I came home from school, collapsed into a nap for an hour, and immediately got ready for THREE FREAKING PARTIES IN ONE NIGHT. ****************•**

**********************************•** I also realize it was going fast near the end. I'm SO sorry about that! I was just too eager to finish this and post my new story x) **************•**  


******************• **But anyways, HAPPY [belated] HALLOWEEN! **************•**  


******************•** How were your guys' Halloweens? Got any odd/scary/funny stories to tell me? ;) I'd seriously love to hear about them! So tell me. **************•**  


******************•**This story's over. Thanksgiving is coming up. Anyone up for a Thanksgiving special? ;) **************•**  


******************•** See you all soon! Muah~ **************•**  


**-burrblefish  
**


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